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THE  MUTINEET{^ 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHORS. 
Uniform  in  style  and  price  wilh  this  Volume. 

A  FIRST   FLEET  FAMILY: 

A   Hitherto   Unpublished   Narrative 
of   certain    Remarkable   Adven- 
tures   Compiled    from    the 
Papers    of    Sergeant 
William    Drew 
of  the  Marines. 
With  Map 


The   Mutineer^ 

A     ROMANCE     OF 
PITCAIRN  ISLAND 


LOUIS    BECKE 


<jLr^ 


ii 

AND 


WALTER   JEFFERY 


LONDON 

T.     FISHER    UN  WIN 

PATERNOSTER     SQUARE 
MDCCCXCVIII 


rt^ 


{All  rights  rescnxcf\ 


MAiU 


CONTENTS 


^ 


PART    I 


CHAP. 

PAGE 

I. 

THE     HEART    OF    A     SAVAGE 

I 

II. 

THE    CUTTING    OF    THE    CABLE 

lO 

III. 

WHITE    MEN     AND     BROWN    WOMEN 

.       22 

IV. 

THE     FIRST    SAILING    OF    THE    "  BOUNTY  " 

31 

V. 

THE     LAST    STRAW 

•     37 

VI. 

THE    RUBICON            .                   .                   .                   . 

43 

VII. 

MUTINY               .... 

•     57 

VIII. 

■ 

"hurrah   for  Tahiti!" 

67 

hx. 

THE    council    in    THE    CABIN    . 

'    74 

X. 

PIPIRI    THE    AREOI 

83 

XI. 

TOGETHER    AGAIN 

.     89 

XII. 

THE     END    OF     PIPIRI 

103 

XIII. 

FAREWELL    TO    TUBUAI 

.  "3 

XIV. 

THE    LAST    SAILING    OF    THE    "  BOUNTY  "       . 

118 

968.507 


viii  CONTENTS 

PART   II 

CHAP.  PAGE 

XV.  THE    SEARCH     FOR     A    RESTING-PLACE        .  .     IZJ 

XVI.  THE     FLIGHT     OF    THE     KANAPU           .                     .  139 
XVII.  THE    STORY    OF    AFITA                   .                   .  .     I48 

XVIII.  BOUNTY    BAY           .                    ,                    .                    .  I  56 

XIX.  HEWERS    OF    WOOD    AND    DRAWERS    OF    WATER  .     1 64 

XX.  MAHINa's    FIRST-BORN           .                                        .  I78 

XXI.  THE    FIRST    TO    DIE      .                    .                   .  .     186 

XXII.  A     LOYAL     FRIEND                      .                     .                     .  I93 

XXIII.  THE    OPPRESSOR  ....     I98 

XXIV.  THE    QUARREL         .                    .                    .                   .  .210 
XXV.  THE    REVOLT    OF    TALALU              .                     .  .    2l6 

XXVI.  NAHl's    MESSAGE     ....  222 

XXVII.  ALREMa's    SONG  ....    228 

XXVIII,  "his   heart's   desire"    .              .              .  235 

XXIX.  the    TONGUE    OF    A    WOMAN       .                     .  .    242 

XXX.  AFTER    THE    STORM                  .                   .                    .  ZjC 

XXXI.  "mine  the   hand!"                            .  .  25c 
xxxii.  nahi's  revenge  ....  idi 

XXXIII.  the   brew  OF  death              .              .  .  271 

XXXIV.  "try    TO     FORGET    THE    PAST  "         .                   .  28 
XXXV.  THE    LAST    SHOT    ON    AFITA          .                    .  .29 


PART    I 

CHAPTER   I 

THE    HEART   OF    A    SAVAGE 

IT  was  night  at  Tahiti,  in  the  Society,  Iskrid^.  The 
trade-wind  had  died  away-^  and  a  bright  ilcod,  ct 
shimmering  moonlight  poured  dowji  ypcn;  the  slumber- 
ing waters  of  a  little  harbour  a  few  miles  distant  from 
Matavai  Bay,  and  the  white  curve  or  beach  that 
fringed  the  darkened  line  of  palms  shone  and  glistened 
like  a  belt  of  ivory  under  the  effulgence  of  its  rays. 
For  nearly  half  a  mile  the  broad  sweep  of  dazzling 
sand  showed  no  interruption  nor  break  upon  its  surface 
save  at  one  spot  ;  there  it  ran  out  into  a  long  narrow 
point,  on  which,  under  a  small  cluster  of  graceful 
cocos,  growing  almost  at  the  water's  edge,  a  canoe 
was  drawn  up. 

Seated  upon  the  platform  ot  the  outrigger,  and  con- 
versing in  low  tones,  were  a  man  and  woman. 

The  man  was  an  European,  dressed  in  the  uniform 
of  a  junior  naval  officer  at  the  end  of  the  last  century. 
He  was  of   medium   height,   with  a  dark,   gipsy-like 

2 


2  THE    MUTINEER 

complexion  and  wavy  brown  hair,  and  as  he  drew  the 
woman's  face  to  him  and  kissed  her,  her  skin  showed 
not  so  dark  as  his. 

The  woman,  or  rather  girl,  was  a  pure-blooded 
native,  wearing  only  the  island  pareu  of  tappa  cloth 
about  her  loins  and  a  snow-white  teputa  or  poncho 
of  the  same  material  over  her  gracefully-rounded 
shoulders.  The  white  man's  right  arm  was  round  her 
waist,  she  held  his  left  hand  in  hers,  and  with  her  head 
against  his  bosom  looked  up  into  his  face  with  all  the 
passionate  ardour  of  a  woman  who  loves. 

For  a  few  moments  the  man  ceased  speaking  and 
■  Looked  anxipusly^  over  his  shoulder  at  a  number  of 
white  tents,  pitched  in  a  grove  of  breadfruit  trees 
:S()me  fei\  hundred  yai-ds  away. 
'As  lielooked,th<i' moonlight  shone  upon  the  musket 
barrel  of  a  sentry,  whose  head  could  just  be  discerned 
above  the  beach  as  he  paced  slowly  to  and  fro  before 
the  tents. 

Bending  her  head  of  wavy,  glossy  black  hair,  the  girl 
pressed  her  lips  softly  upon  the  white  man's  hand,  and 
raising  her  face  again,  her  eyes  followed  his,  and  as  she 
noticed  his  intent  look,  a  curious,  alarmed  expression 
came  into  her  own  lustrous  orbs. 

"  What  is  it  ?  "  she  murmured.  "  Does  the  soldier 
see  us  ?  " 

The  man  smiled  reassuringly  and  shook  his  head  ; 
then  still  clasping  the  girl's  waist  within  his  arm,  he 
gazed  earnestly  into  her  beautiful  face  and  sighed  and 
muttered  to  himself. 

"  Mahina,"    he   said    hesitatingly    in    the    Tahitian 


THE    IMAGE  3 

tongue  and  speaking  very  softly,  "  you  are  a  beautiful 
woman." 

The  girl's  lips  parted  in  a  tender  smile,  her  eyes 
glowed  with  a  soft,  happy  light,  and  again  she  took 
his  hand  in  hers  and  kissed  it  passionately. 

"  My  white  lover,"  she  murmured,  "  would  that  I 
could  tell  thee  in  thine  own  tongue  how  I  love  thee. 
But  the  language  of  Peretane  ^  is  hard  to  the  lips  of 
us  of  Tahiti ;  yet,  in  a  little  time,  when  thou  hast  learned 
mine,  thou  wilt  know  all  the  great  love  that  is  in  my 
heart  for  thee,  and  then  thou  shalt  tell  me  all  that  is  in 
thine  for  me." 

The  man  drew  her  slender  figure  to  his  bosom  again  ; 
although  he  spoke  her  tongue  but  indifferently  and  she 
knew  little  of  his,  the  ardent  love  which  shone  in  her 
eyes  and  illumined  her  whole  face,  made  her  meaning 
plain  enough.  For  a  minute  or  so  he  remained  silent, 
then  again  the  girl's  eyes  sought  his  and  her  hand 
trembled  as  she  noted  the  troubled,  anxious  look 
deepening  upon  his  features. 

"  Kirisiani,"  she  said,  stroking  his  sun-bronzed  cheek, 
"what  is  in  thy  mind  to  make  this  cloud  come  to  thine 
eyes  ? " 

"  Mahina,"  he  answered  in  English,  "  the  time  is 
near  now  for  us  to  part "  ;  then  seeing  that  the  girl  did 
not  quite  cornprehend,  he  repeated  his  words  in  the 
native  language. 

"  And  wilt  thou  leave  me  who  loveth  thee,  to  sail 
away  with  the  white  y/r/V,2  thy  enemy  ?  " 

"How  can  I  help  it?     Am  I  not  the  King's  officer  ? 

'  Britain.  ^  An  officer,  a  captain,  or  chief. 


4  THE    MUTINEER 

Did  I  yield  to  my  love  for  thee  and  let  the  ship  sail 
without  me,  then  in  mine  own  land  I  should  be  held 
up  to  scorn  as  a  false  man,  and  those  of  my  name 
would  be  shamed." 

The  girl  slowly  bent  her  head  and  put  her  hands 
over  her  face  ;  then  came  a  sudden,  silent  gush  of  tears. 
For  a  while  she  sobbed  softly,  as  only  women  sob  when 
some  bright  dream  of  love  and  happiness  passes  away 
for  ever.  Then  with  a  quick  movement  she  freed 
herself  from  the  man's  encircling  arms,  flung  herself 
upon  her  knees  on  the  sand,  raised  her  tear-dimmed, 
starlike  eyes  to  his,  and  spoke. 

"  Yet  thou  knowest  we  love  thee  ;  and  if  thou  wilt 
remain  with  us  my  people  will  take  thee  to  their 
hearts,  and  thou  shalt  become  a  chief  among  us.  For 
see,  I,  Mahina,  am  of  good  blood,  and  there  is  no  other 
woman  in  the  land  that  loves  thee  as  I  do.  And  thou 
shalt  have  as  many  slaves  as  Tina,  our  chief,  and  like 
him,  be  carried  upon  men's  shoulders  wherever  thou 
goest,  so  that  thy  feet  shall  not  touch  the  ground." 

The  man  took  her  hands  from  his  knees  and,  passing 
his  arms  around  her,  tenderly  lifted  her  up  to  her  seat 
again.  Then  with  his  forehead  resting  upon  his  hand 
he  sat  and  thought. 

"  No,  Mahina.  It  cannot  be  as  thou  desirest ;  for 
I  am  the  King's  servant,  an  y/r/7,  and  it  would  be 
death  to  me  were  I  to  yield  to  my  love  for  thee  and  flee 
from  the  ship  like  one  of  the  common  sailors.  Some 
day  I  may  return — when  I  am  no  longer  serving  in  a 
King's  ship." 

He  was  on  the  point  of  rising  and  bidding  her  return 


THE  IMAGE  5 

to  her  home  in  the  native  village  which  lay  some 
distance  back  from  the  cluster  of  tents,  when  she 
sprang  to  her  feet  and  stood  before  him  with  one  hand 
pressed  to  her  panting  bosom. 

Barely  eighteen  years  of  age,  her  tall,  slender  figure, 
as  she  stood  in  the  flood  of  moonlight,  showed  all 
the  grace  and  beauty  of  perfect  womanhood.  Unlike 
the  generality  of  the  Polynesian  women  (who  possess  in 
their  youth  a  faultless  symmetry  of  figure  rivalled  by  no 
other  race  in  the  world,  yet  too  often  have  somewhat 
flattened  faces),  her  features  were  absolutely  perfect  in 
their  oval  regularity  and  beauty,  and  through  the  olive 
skin  of  her  cheek  there  now  glowed  a  dusky  red,  and 
her  lover  saw  that  her  frame  was  shaking  with  over- 
mastering passion  as  she  strove  to  speak.  Only  once 
before  had  Fletcher  Christian  seen  her  look  like  this — 
when  some  of  her  girlish  companions  had  coupled  his 
name  with  that  of  Nuia,  the  sister  of  Tina,  the  chief. 

"  Mahina,"  said  her  lover,  stepping  forward  and 
essaying  to  take  her  hand. 

She  drew  quickly  back,  and  made  an  almost 
threatening  gesture. 

Christian  paused  irresolutely,  for  the  look  of  scorn 
and  fury  in  the  girl's  eyes  daunted  and  shamed  him. 
Then  he  spoke. 

"  Mahina,  this  is  folly.  Why  art  thou  so  angered 
with  me  ? " 

"Thou  false  white  man!"  she  answered,  and  the 
strange,  hoarse  break  in  her  young  voice  startled  him 
— its  melody  and  sweetness  were  changed  into  the 
jarring  accents  of  rage  and  wounded  pride  ;  "  touch 


6  THE    MUTINEER 

me  no  more,"  and  here  a  quick,  sobbing  note  sounded 
in  her  throat.  "  Am  I  nothing  to  thee  ?  Is  all  my 
beauty  so  soon  dead  to  thee,  and  wilt  thou  put  such 
shame  upon  me  r " 

"  Nay,  Mahina,  but  listen " 

"  Why  should  I  listen  to  thee,  now  that  thou  art 
about  to  cast  me  off?  Dost  thou  think  that  I  am  a 
Tahitian  woman,  to  be  played  with  till  thou  hast  tired 
of  me ;  and  then  be  given,  with  a  laugh,  to  some 
other  white  man  on  the  ship — as  I  have  seen  done  ? 
Did  I  not  tell  thee  once  that  though  I  was  born  in  this 
land  of  Tahiti  my  mother's  mother  came  from  the  far 
distant  island  of  Afita — the  island  that  springs  up  like 
a  steep  rock  from  the  blue  depths  of  the  unknown  sea  ? 
And  by  her  was  my  mother  taught  to  despise  these 
dog-eaters  of  Tahiti  ;  and  as  my  mother  was  taught,  so 
she  taught  me." 

For  the  hundredth  time  since  he  had  fallen  under 
the  spell  of  the  girl's  beauty  and  succumbed  to  the 
witchery  of  her  ways  and  to  the  sound  of  her  melting 
voice,  her  white  lover  again  felt  that  her  presence 
would  overcome  his  resolution  to  part  with  her  and 
return  to  his  hateful  duty ;  and  for  the  hundredth 
time  he  struggled  to  resist  a  fascination  he  knev/ 
was  fatal.  So,  not  daring  to  look  into  the  danger- 
depths  of  her  now  tear-dimmed  eyes,  he  spoke  again 
with  seeming  calm,  but  yet  his  face  paled  and  flushed 
and  paled  again  at  the  sound  of  his  own  cold  words. 
He  loved  her,  he  said,  but  how  could  he  escape  from 
the  ship  ?    The  punishment  would  be  death. 

"  Death,"  she  said  ;  "  nay,  not  so,  my  lover,  but  life 


THE    IMAGE  7 

for  us  both.  Listen  to  me,  and  I  will  show  thee  that 
we  shall  never  part  again.  And  heed  not  the  hot 
words  of  anger  that  leapt  from  my  heart "  ;  and  then 
with  all  the  eloquence  of  her  passionate  nature  she 
unfolded  to  him  a  plan  of  escape,  and  as  she  spoke  her 
eyes  and  hands  and  lips  came  to  the  aid  of  her  soft, 
low  voice. 

"Mahina,"  and  he  turned  from  her  abruptly  and 
walked  to  and  fro  upon  the  sand,  with  working  face 
and  clenched  hands,  "let  this  end,  girl  ;  I  cannot  do  as 
you  wish." 

"Ah,"  and  again  the  tender  voice  became  harsh  and 
the  red  spark  came  into  the  dark  eyes,  "  then  there  is 
some  painted  woman  in  thine  own  land  whom 
thou  lovest — a  woman  such  as  is  she  whom  we  saw 
on  the  ship — and  it  is  for  her  thou  hast  cast  me  off." 

"Why,  you  pretty  fool,"  said  the  man  in  English, 
with  a  laugh,  as  he  took  her  hand,  "  are  you  like  your 
mother — offended  at  a  silly  jest  ?  Did  not  you  cry  with 
the  other  girls,  '  Huaheine  no  Peretane  tnaitai^  '^  and 
when  you  were  told  that  it  was  but  a  figure  of  wax 
did  you  not  laugh  with  them  ?  " 

"Ay,"  replied  the  girl,  and  her  voice  had  a  sullen 
tone,  "  but  how  know  I  that  this  image,  which  thou 
sayest  was  made  by  one  of  the  sailors  of  the  ship,  is 
not  the  image  of  one  thou  lovest  in  Peretane  ?  And 
my  mother  hath  told  me  that  this  image  of  the  woman 
with  the  hair  like  the  sun  and  eyes  like  the  ocean  blue 
is  carried  on  the  ship  as  a  spell  to  keep  the  white 
men's  hearts  hard  to  us  women  of  Tahiti." 

'  "  The  Englishwoman  is  good  "  (to  look  at). 


8  THE    MUTINEER 

"  Nay,"  said  the  man,  in  Tahitian,  "  I  tell  thee  no 
lies,  Mahina  ;  'twas  but  a  silly  jest  of  the  sailors.  The 
thing  was  the  waxen  head  and  shoulders  of  a  woman,  and 
the  sailors,  to  make  the  people  laugh,  made  unto  it  a 
body  and  wrapped  it  in  garments  and  made  pretence 
that  it  was  an  Englishwoman.  Thy  countrymen  knew 
it  was  but  a  jest — but  thy  mother,  who,  lacking  keen 
vision,  for  she  is  old,  was  foolish  enough  to  believe  in 
it ;  so  when  she  placed  presents  of  mats  and  food  at  its 
feet,  all  who  saw  laughed  at  her  ;  and  because  she  was 
angered  at  this  hath  she  told  thee  this  silly  tale." 

"  Then,  if  the  thing  lives  not,  how  is  it  that  the 
man  who  showed  it  to  our  people  carries  it  with 
him?" 

"  Thou  silly  little  one  !  know  that  in  my  country 
there  be  men  who  are  workers  and  dressers  of  men's 
and  women's  hair,  and  such  images  as  that  which  thou 
hast  seen  are  placed  outside  their  dwellings  so  that 
men  may  know  their  trade.  And  this  man  on  the 
ship  dresses  and  curls  and  whitens  the  false  heads  of 
hair  that  some  of  us  wear  by  placing  them  on  the  head 
of  the  image — for  then  is  his  task  easy." 

"  Ah,"  she  said  in  a  whisper,  "  forgive  me  ;  but  tell 
me  that  thou  wilt  not  leave  me." 

"  No,  no,  Mahina,  tempt  me  not  again  ;  it  cannot 
be.  Good-night.  Go  to  thy  mother's  house — and  try 
to  forget  me."  Then,  not  daring  to  look  into  her 
agonised  face,  he  hurriedly  embraced  her  and  walked 
quickly  towards  the  tents. 

"  Go,"  said  the  girl,  as  she  sank  down  with  her 
black  mantle  ot  hair  falling  over  her  shoulders,  "  go. 


THE    IMAGE  9 

then,  and  see  Mahina  no  more.  It  is  because  I  am 
not  white  that  thou  leavest  me  here  with  hunger  in 
my  heart  for  thee."  And  as  she  heard  the  sound  of 
his  footsteps  over  the  loose  pebbles  some  distance  away, 
followed  by  the  sentry's  challenge,  she  lay  prone  upon 
the  sand  and  wet  it  with  a  flood  of  anguished  tears. 


CHAPTER   II 

THE    CUTTING    OF    THE    CABLE 

SCARCE  two  cables'  lengths  away  from  the  dark 
fringe  of  palms  which  lined  the  white,  shimmer- 
ing beach,  the  Bounty  lay  motionless  upon  the  placid, 
reef-sheltered  waters  of  the  quiet  little  bay,  her  hempen 
cable  hanging  straight  up  and  down  from  hawse-pipe  to 
anchor,  fifteen  fathoms  below  her  forefoot.  From 
the  cabin  windows  a  light  in  the  captain's  berth  shot  a 
dulled  gleam  upon  the  darkened  water  under  her 
cumbrous  stern,  which  the  bright  rays  of  moonlight 
had  not  yet  touched,  for  though  the  moon  was  full  it 
was  not  high,  and  the  ship  lay  head  to  the  south-east- 
ward, with  her  bows  toward  the  verdured  slopes 
of  Orohena  Mountain,  whose  mist-capped  summit 
towered  seven  thousand  feet  to  the  sky.  Aloft,  the 
ship's  black  spars  stood  silhouetted  against  the  snow- 
white  canvas  bent  in  readiness  for  her  departure  ;  for 
in  a  day  or  two  her  long  stay  at  Tahiti  would  come 
to  an  end,  and  the  bows  of  the  little  barque  would  be 
turned  southward  for  her  voyage  to  the  West  Indies. 
In  the  great  cabin,  the  chief  entrance  to  which  was 


THE    CUTTING    OF  THE    CABLE  ii 

from  the  main  deck,  the  moon-rays  sent  a  stream  of 
li^ht  through  the  open  doors,  and  showed  a  strange 
sight  to  see  on  shipboard. 

Instead  of  being  fitted  up  like  a  King's  ship,  or  indeed 
as  a  merchantman,  the  whole  cabin  space  was  filled 
with  young  breadfruit  plants.  Reaching  fore  and  aft 
from  the  cabin  doors  to  the  transoms  were  five  tiers  of 
stout  shelving,  built  to  receive  the  pots  in  which  the 
plants  were  placed  ;  while  sloping  upwards  towards 
the  after  part  of  the  quarter  deck  from  the  transoms 
themselves  were  five  tiers  more.  Nearly  all  the 
plants  were  fully-leaved,  and  a  stray  moonbeam  now 
and  then  pierced  its  way  through  them  to  strike 
against  and  illumine  the  dark  mahogany  doors  of  the 
rooms  on  either  side  of  this  strangely  furnished  cabin. 

Nearly  nine  months  before,  the  Bounty^  of  215 
tons  burden,  had  left  Spithead  for  Tahiti  under  the 
command  of  Lieutenant  William  Bligh,  who  had  been 
sailing-master  with  the  great  navigator  Cook  in  the 
Resolution.  The  ship  which  Bligh  now  commanded 
was  specially  fitted  to  convey  specimens  of  the  bread- 
fruit tree  from  Tahiti — the  Otaheite  of  Cook — to 
the  West  Indies,  in  the  hope  that  the  tree  would  there 
take  root  and  flourish  and  furnish  as  bountiful  a  food 
supply  to  the  negroes  of  those  islands  as  it  did  to  the 
light,  copper-coloured  people  of  the  isles  of  the  Pacific. 

Of  the  forty-six  persons  who  sailed  from  Spithead 
in  the  Bounty,  all,  save  Fletcher  Christian,  the  senior 
master's  mate,  and  a  guard  of  four  men  who  were  on 
shore,  were  at  that  moment  on  board  ;  and  all,  except 
the  anchor  watch,  were  deep  in  slumber. 


12  THE    MUTINEER 

Walking  to  and  fro  on  the  forepart  of  the  upper 
deck  was  Edward  Young,  a  square-built,  dark-com- 
plexioned man  of  twenty-two,  and  midshipman  in 
charge  of  the  watch.  For  nearly  an  hour  he  had 
thus  paced  the  deck,  glancing  now  at  cloud-capped 
Orohena,  six  miles  away,  and  now  at  the  white  tents 
of  the  shore  party  with  the  dark  figure  of  the  sentry  in 
the  foreground.  Presently  he  stopped  and  looked 
intently  towards  another  part  of  the  beach  where,  an 
hour  before,  he  had  seen  two  figures  seated  upon  a 
canoe  which  was  drawn  up  on  the  hard,  white  sand  ; 
they  were  gone,  but  his  quick  eye  discerned  the  smaller 
of  the  two  disappear  among  the  coconut  groves 
towards  the  village  of  Papawa,  while  the  taller  person 
walked  quickly  over  to  the  largest  of  the  four  tents 
and   entered   it. 

"Ah,"  he  said  to  himself,  and  an  amused  smile 
flitted  over  his  sallow  features,  "Master  Fletcher 
and  Mahina,  as  I  thought.  He's  badly  love-smitten 
with  that  girl  ...  no  wonder  he  doesn't  grumble  at 
doing  duty  over  the  breadfruit  plants  on  shore,  with 
such  a  woman  as  that  to  sit  by  his  side  and  charm  him 
with  her  sweet  prattle.  .  .  .  Better  to  be  at  that  than 
doing  this  cursed  dog-trot  up  and  down  in  the  moon- 
light .  .  .  and  yet 'tis  dangerous  .  .  .  aye, as  dangerous 
for  him  as  it  is  for  me  to  linger  among  these  people  so 
long."   _ 

He  sighed,  and  then  baring  his  left  arm,  looked  at 
a  name  tatooed  upon  it  lengthwise  ;  then  with  an 
angry  gesture  of  contempt,  pulled  down  his  sleeve,  and 
resumed  his  walk  to  and  fro. 


THE   CUTTING   OF   THE   CABLE  13 

"  Dangerous  !  Aye,  indeed  it  is  !  Else  why  should 
I,  a  King's  officer,  and  as  proud  a  man  as  Fletcher 
Christian — whom  I  call  a  fool — commit  such  folly  as 
this  ?  What  would  my  fine  uncle  say  did  he  know  that 
I  had  gone  so  far  as  to  promise  this  girl,  whose  name 
is  on  my  arm,  never  to  leave  her.  And  though  I  do 
leave  her,  is  it  less  dishonourable  for  me  to  beguile  her 
with  lies  because  my  skin  is  white  and  hers  is  brown  ? 
Well,  in  a  week  or  so,  poor  Alrema  will  have  to  learn 
to  forget  me." 

A  cool  breath  of  air  touched  his  cheek,  and  looking 
shoreward  he  saw  the  plumed  palm-tops  swaying 
gently  to  and  fro  ;  then  again  a  smart  puft'  rippled 
the  glassy  surface  of  the  water  between  the  ship  and 
the  shore  and  swept  seaward  ;  and  Young  saw  the 
black  wall  of  a  rain  squall  come  fleeting  down  from 
the  dark  shadow  of  the  mountain. 

Calling  to  the  watch  to  stand-by,  the  young  officer 
picked  up  his  oil-skin,  which  one  of  the  men  brought 
him,  put  it  on,  and  waited  for  the  squall  to  strike  the 
ship.  Ouickly  it  loomed  down  upon  the  line  of  palms, 
the  black  cloud  paling  to  a  misty  white  as  it  drew 
nearer  ;  then  it  rustled,  then  fiercely  shook  the  waving 
branches  and  drenched  them  with  an  ice-cold  shower 
ere  it  hummed  and  whistled  through  the  Bounty's 
cordage  and  sent  her  sharply  astern,  to  tauten  up  her 
cable  as  rigid  as  an  iron  bar. 

"  Pretty  stiff  while  it  lasts,  Tom,"  said  one  of  the 
anchor  watch  to  a  messmate,  as,  ten  minutes  after- 
wards, the  tail  end  of  the  squall  passed  and  the  bright 
moonlight    again    played    upon    the    soaking   decks. 


14  THE    MUTINEER 

"  Damme,  but  I'd  like  to  see  a  stifFer  one  come  along 
and  part  the  cable,  eh  ?  " 

As  the  droning  hum  of  the  squall  ceased  and  the 
palm  branches  hung  pendulous  to  rest  again,  a  woman, 
nude,  except  for  the  narrow  girdle  of  leaves  around  her 
waist,  raised  herself  from  the  foot  of  a  coconut  tree 
behind  which  she  had  crouched,  and  looked  at  the 
ship.  In  her  right  hand  was  an  open  clasp  kjiife. 
She  leant  her  back  against  the  tree  and  gazed  steadily 
at  the  Bounty  for  nearly  a  minute,  then  with  an  angry 
exclamation  cast  the  knife  from  her  into  the  sea. 

"  Fool  that  I  was  !  Why  did  I  not  cut  the  rope 
through  ?  Even  though  the  young  Jrii  had  seen  me 
he  would  not  have  raised  his  hand  to  harm  me,  for  he 
too  would  gladly  see  the  ship  cast  away  and  broken 
upon  the  reef,  so  that  he  need  not  leave  my  cousin 
Alrema." 

An  hour  later,  when  daylight  broke,  Edward 
Young,  after  calling  the  ship's  company,  again  went 
to  the  bows  to  take  a  look  at  the  cable.  It  was  his 
last  duty  before  reporting  to  his  relief  that  all  was 
well,  and  then  turning  in.  As  he  peered  over  the  low 
bows  of  the  vessel  he  saw  the  hemp  cable  stretching 
away  down  into  the  clear  depths  of  the  calm  water. 
In  a  moment  his  sailor's  eye  saw  that  all  the  strands 
of  the  cable  but  one  were  parted. 

His  sallow  face  turned  white,  then  flushed  again, 
and  quickly  walking  aft  he  knocked  at  the  door  of 
the  state  room  occupied  by  Lieutenant  William  Bligh. 

"  Who  is  it  ?  "  inquired  a  sharp,  imperious  voice  ; 
then  ere  the  young  man  had  given  his  name  the  cabin 


THE   CUTTING   OF    THE    CABLE  15 

door  opened  and  a  man  of  medium  height,  little  more 
than  thirty  years  old,  stood  facing  the  midshipman. 
His  features  were  clear  cut  and  refined  and  of 
singular  whiteness — remarkable  in  one  whose  occu- 
pation was  the  sea — and  his  complexion  contrasted 
strikingly  with  the  jet  black  of  his  hair. 

"  The  cable  is  nearly  chafed  through,  sir,  or  the 
strands  have  parted.  There  was  a  strong  squall  just 
before  dayligjit  and  the  ship  straijicd  very  heavily  upon 
it.     I  think " 

"Keep  your  opinions  to  yourself.  You  are  a  damned 
careless  fellow,  and  not  fit  even  to  keep  anchor  watch. 
Where  is  it  chafed  r " 

"  About  a  fathom  below  the  water,  sir,"  answered 
the  young  man  with  an  unsteady  voice  and  an  angry 
gleam  in  his  dark  eyes.  "  When  I  looked  just  now  it 
was  tautened  out,  and  I  saw  that  only  one  strand 
remained." 

"  Bah,"  said  the  commander  with  a  contemptuous 
laugh;  "and  you  have  the  audacity  to  attempt  to 
screen  your  carelessness  by  telling  me  it  has  chafed — 
a  couple  of  fathoms  down  from  the  hawse-pipe  and  in 
fifteen  fathoms  of  water  !  The  fact  is,  some  of  the 
natives  have  been  off  in  a  canoe  and  cut  it  under  your 
nose.  You  ought  to  have  prevented  it.  Were  you 
asleep  on  your  watch,  Mr.  Young  ?  Answer  me 
quickly." 

"  I  was  not,  sir,"  answered  the  young  man  quietly, 
steadying  his  voice  ;  "and  I  will  swear  that  no  canoe 
has  come  near  the  ship  since  I  took  charge  of  the  deck. 
I  believe  she   brought  up  to  her  anchor  so  suddenly 


i6  THE    MUTINEER 

during  the  squall  that   the  jerk  caused  the  cable  to 
part." 

"  That  will  do.  I  will  see  to  this  matter  myself. 
You  are  all  alike — every  one  of  you.  There  is  not  an 
officer  in  the  ship  that  I  can  trust.  Order  my  boat 
away." 

The  angry,  red  flush  in  the  commander's  pale 
cheeks  and  the  steady  glitter  in  his  light  blue  eyes 
boded  ill  to  the  young  officer,  whose  own  dark  features 
were  dyed  deep  with  repressed  passion  ;  but  by  a 
powerful  effort  he  overcame  the  desire  to  hurl  back 
his  superior  officer's  taunts,  and  saluting  the  captain 
with  a  hand  which  trembled  with  rage,  he  withdrew. 

In  a  quarter  of  an  hour  Bligh  stepped  out  of  his  boat 
on  to  the  beach.  Before  he  had  walked  a  dozen  paces 
he  was  met  with  smiles  of  welcome  by  Moana  and 
Tina,  two  of  the  leading  chiefs,  as  had  ever  been  the 
case  during  the  many  weeks  of  the  Bounty  s  stay  at  the 
island. 

But  instead  of  the  outstretched  hand  of  friendship 
the  angry  officer  gave  them  but  a  cold  inclination  of 
his  head,  and  passed  them  by.  At  the  entrance  to 
the  principal  tent  stood  Fletcher  Christian,  who 
saluted  as  the  commander  approached. 

"Mr.  Christian,"  and  the  moment  the  master's 
mate  heard  the  sharp,  fierce  ring  in  his  captain's  tones, 
his  jaw  set  firmly  and  his  eye  looked  steadily  into 
Bligh's,  "  Mr.  Christian,  the  cable  has  been  cut. 
Most  providentially,  however,  despite  the  criminal 
negligence  of  Mr.  Young,  the  officer  of  the  watch, 
one  strand  was  not  severed.     That,  fortunately,  held 


THE    CUTTING  OF    THE    CABLE  [7 

the  ship ;  otherwise  she  would  now  be  lying  on 
the  reef.  I  am  determined  that  the  culprit  shall 
be  found  and  made  an  example  of — as,  by  God  !  he 
shall." 

"  Very  good,  sir.  Shall  I  send  word  for  Tina  and 
the  other  chiefs  to  come  to  you  ?  " 

"Why  so,  sir  ?  What  reason  have  you  to  jump  to 
the  conclusion  that  this  piece  of  villainy  is  the  work  of 
the  natives  ? " 

"I  cannot  imagine,  sir,  who  else  should  be 
suspected." 

"That  is  a  matter  of  opinion.  I  have  mine.  But 
as  you  have  made  the  suggestion  I  will  at  least 
put  your  uncalled-for  suspicions  to  the  test  of 
investigation." 

"  Pardon  me,  sir "  began  Christian,  when  Bligh 

cut  him  short  with  an  imperious  gesture. 

"Send  for  Tina." 

In  another  minute  a  tall,  stout,  but  handsome  native 
whose  speaking  countenance  expressed  the  most  timid 
deference  and  respect,  joined  the  captain  and  Chris- 
tian. 

"Tina,"  said  Bligh,  fixing  his  keen  eyes  upon  the 
chief's  face,  which  already  showed  the  deepest 
concern,  "  what  does  this  mean  ?  My  ship's  cable 
has  been  cut.  Some  of  your  people  have  done  it. 
Let  them  be  found  instantly." 

Like  the  simple  child  of  nature  that  he  was,  the 
chief  clasped  his  hands  beseechingly  together,  and  the 
quick  tears  welled  up  into  his  dark  eyes  ere  he  could 
speak. 

3 


1 8  THE    MUTINEER 

"  What  man  is  there  of  mine,  oh  friend  of  Tuti  ^  and 
friend  of  Tina,  who  would  do  thee  or  thine  such  wrong 
as  this  ? "  and  then  with  the  utmost  distress  depicted 
on  his  face  he  beckoned  to  him  a  fine,  handsome 
woman  of  about  thirty,  and  hurriedly  spoke  a  few 
words  to  her.  As  she  quickly  walked  away  to  do  his 
bidding,  he  turned  to  Bligh,  and  in  pleading  accents 
besought  him  to  wait  a  little  till  his  wife  Aitia 
returned. 

The  captain  of  the  Bounty  nodded,  seated  himselr 
upon  a  stool  which  the  sentry  brought  to  him,  and 
waited.  The  chief's  house  was  but  a  short  distance 
from  the  tents  and  soon  the  woman  returned  carrying 
with  her  a  framed  picture  of  a  naval  officer.  It  was  a 
portrait  of  Captain  Cook,  painted  by  Webber  in  1777, 
which  the  great  navigator  had  presented  to  the 
Tahitians,  and  which  they  treated  with  as  much 
reverence  as  if  it  were  a  god. 

"  See,"  said  the  chief,  taking  the  picture  from 
Aitia's  hand,  and  the  accents  of  perfect  truth  rang  in 
his  voice,  "see,  this  is  Tuti,"  and  he  held  it  out 
towards  the  two  officers  ;  "  would  I,  Tina,  whom  he 
knew  as  Umu  -  his  friend,  and  whose  eyes  love  to  look 
upon  this,  his  face  which  speaketh  not,  would  I  tell 
thee  lies  ?  Nay,  oh  chief,  it  is  my  mind  that  none  of 
my  people  have  done  this  thing  ;  but  yet  who  can  tell 
the  wickedness  that  cometh  into  the  hearts  of  men  at 
times  ?  And  so  now  will  I  speak  and  seek  if  there 
be  a  man  among  my  people  with  such  an  evil  heart, 
and  if  there    be   then  will  I  myself  slay  him  before 

'  Cook.        "  His  former  name  of  Umu  had  devolved  upon  his  son. 


THE    CUTTING   OF   THE    CABLE  19 

thee,  so  that  the  bitterness  that  is  in  my  heart  and 
thine  shall  die  away  and  be  forgotten." 

And  then,  before  the  officer  could  frame  a  reply  to 
the  chiefs  impassioned  speech,  Aitia  was  at  his  feet, 
the  tears  streaming  down  her  face  while  she  repeated 
her  husband's  protestations  of  love  and  affection  for  all 
who  came  from  the  land  of  Peretane. 

The  earnest  manner  of  the  chief  had  its  effect  upon 
the  quick,  impulsive  temper  of  Bligh — a  man  who 
could  change  in  a  moment  from  the  violence  of 
intemperate  passion  to  the  most  winning  amiability  of 
manner. 

In  more  gentle  tones  he  replied  that  he  was  satisfied 
that  Tina  would  do  his  best  to  discover  who  had  cut  the 
cable,  although  if  the  culprit  were  found  he  hoped  he 
would  not  go  so  far  in  punishing  him  as  to  take  his 
life.  Then  he  turned  to  Christian,  and  altering  the 
suave  tone  in  which  he  had  addressed  the  chief,  curtly 
ordered  him  to  take  the  boat's  crews  and  load  the 
boats  with  plants. 

Merely  touching  his  hat,  the  master's  mate  repeated 
the  order  to  the  coxswain  of  the  boat  near  by  and 
turned  away. 

In  an  instant  Bligh's  pale  cheek  flushed  angrily,  and 
he  sprang  to  his  feet. 

"  What  the  devil  do  you  mean  by  receiving  my 
order  in  that  manner  ?  Why  don't  you  answer  me 
when  I  address  you  ?  By  heavens,  sir,  I  will  teach  you 
the  respect  due  to  your  superior  officer  !  " 

Christian  turned  and  faced  him  ;  and  Bligh,  hot 
and  furious  as  was  his  mood  now,  could  not  but  notice 


20  THE    MUTINEER 

the  repressed  passion  in  his  eyes  and  the  paleness  that 
blanched  his  tanned  cheeks,  and  realise  that  Fletcher 
Christian  was  not  a  man  to  drive  to  desperation. 

For  a  moment  the  younger  man  did  not  answer, 
then  the  pallor  of  his  countenance  purpled  with  the 
sudden  rush  of  blood  to  his  face,  the  thick  black  eye- 
brows came  together  and  his  forehead  showed  two 
deep  furrows  as  he  replied — and  in  his  voice  there  was 
no  attempt  to  disguise  the  bitterness  of  heart  within 
him — 

"  I  treat  you,  sir,  with  all  the  respect  that  the  rules 
of  the  Service  demand;  with  the  same  courtesy" — and 
here  his  tones  rang  with  contemptuous  sarcasm — "  I 
answer  you  as  you  show  to  me.  Nothing,  sir,  shall 
induce  me  to  forget  that  I  am  compelled  by  my  duty 
to  adopt  that  courtesy  and  respect.  But,  sir,  beyond 
that  I  will  take  care  to  be  no  more  civil  to  you  than 
your  treatment  of  me  demands  or  justifies." 

"Beware,  sir;  you  are  treading  on  dangerous 
ground — you  are  mutinous !  I've  half  a  mind  to 
make  a  prisoner  of  you  and  keep  you  under  arrest  until 
we  reach  England.  By  heavens,  sir,  Fll  stand  none 
of  your  insolence  and  misconduct !  You  and  every 
other  officer  of  the  ship  shall  be  brought  up  to  the 
mark  and  learn  your  duties." 

But  the  master's  mate  made  no  reply,  and  walked 
quietly  away  after  the  boat's  crew ;  and  Bligh,  his 
frame  trembling  with  passion,  went  towards  the  house 
of  Tina  the  chief. 

Aided  by  the  willing  hands  of  the  natives,  men  and 
women,  who  had  stood  by  listening  with  deep  concern 


THE   CUTTING   OF    THE  CABLE  21 

to  the  angry  discussion  between  the  two  officers,  the 
boats'  crews  soon  loaded  their  boats,  and  Christian  was 
left  alone.  Suddenly  he  felt  a  hand  placed  upon  his 
and  a  voice  murmured — 

"  Kirisiani,  dost  know  who  cut  the  rope  ?  " 

He  started,  and  turned  to  meet  the  beautiful  face  of 
the  girl  he  had  talked  with  during  the  night. 

"  Hush,  Mahina,  tell  me  not,  else  must  I  tell  his 
name  to  the  captain — and  that  means  death." 

She  laughed.  "Thou  knowest  that  it  was  I  who 
did  it.  And  yet  tell  of  it  if  thou  so  desirest.  What 
is  death  to  me,  my  beloved,  if  thou  leavest  me  ?  Listen 
— I  will  tell  thee  all.  So  that  I  might  keep  thee  near 
me  always,  and  my  eyes  look  into  thine,  from  sunrise 
to  dark,  and  my  hand  lie  in  thine  through  the  silence 
of  the  night,  I  swam  to  the  ship  as  the  wind  and  rain 
swept  down  from  the  dark  valleys  of  Orohena,  and 
cut  the  rope." 

"  Mahina,  Mahina,  'twas  well  for  thee  that  the 
chief  of  the  ship  is  no  friend  of  mine — even  now 
hot  words  passed  between  us — else  would  I  tell  him 
'twas  thee.  With  us,  who  are  servants  of  the  King  of 
Britain,  no  woman's  love  must  count — our  love  to 
him  is  first  of  all.  Forget  that  thou  hast  ever  seen 
me." 

She  flung  her  arms  round  his  neck  and  drew  his 
face  down  to  hers.  "  Thou  art  mine — if  thou  leavest 
in  the  ship  then  will  I  curse  thee  and  die." 

Ere  he  could  say  more,  with  an  angry  sob  she  had 
gone. 


CHAPTER   III 

WHITE    MEN    AND    BROWN    WOMEN 

TWO  days  had  passed,  and  now  as  the  departure 
of  the  ship  drew  near  the  natives  redoubled 
their  kindnesses  to  the  Bounty's  people.  Christian, 
with  his  morbid  mind  brooding  over  the  scene 
between  himself  and  his  commander,  did  his  duty  in 
a  dull,  mechanical  way  and  scarce  spoke  even  to 
Edward  Young,  the  one  man  to  whom  his  gloomy 
nature  sometimes  relaxed.  The  parting,  too,  between 
Mahina  and  himself  had  had  its  effect  upon  him  and 
he  now  clearly  saw  that,  untutored  savage  as  she  was, 
she  was  yet  a  tender,  loving  woman  whose  heart  he 
had  cruelly  tortured.  "  But,"  he  reasoned  with  him- 
self, "it  cannot  be  helped.  She  will  never  see  me 
again,  poor  child.  She  will  soon  cast  me  out  of  her 
memory." 

A  mile  or  two  away  from  where  the  Bounty  rode  at 
anchor,  at  a  little  village  called  Torea,  Mahina  and 
Nuia,  the  handsome  sister  of  Tina  the  chief,  sat  to- 
gether with  their  arms  clasped  round  each  other's 
waists.     Mahina's  eyes  were  wet  with  tears,  but  yet 


WHITE    MEN   AND    BROWN    WOMEN       23 

there  was  shining  through  them  the  light  of  radiant 
happiness. 

"  See,  Nuia,  how  I  have  wronged  thee  !  Always, 
always  was  my  heart  wrung  by  the  idle  words  of  those 
who  said  that  Kirisiani  wavered  in  his  love  between 
thee  and  mc." 

Nuia  laughed,  and  her  bright,  starlilce  eyes  looked 
honestly  into  those  of  her  friend. 

"  It  is  false.  True,  I  once  coveted  him  ;  but  soon 
I  saw  it  was  for  thee  alone  that  he  cared.  And  then 
it  was  that  Stcua  ^  told  me  he  loved  me,  and  'tis  he 
alone  that  I  care  for  now  ;  and  gladly  will  I  help  thee 
to  keep  thy  lover,  even  as  do  I  desire  to  keep  mine. 
And  listen  now,  while  I  tell  thee  how  this  shall  be 
done." 

Then  Nuia  told  her  friend  how  some  of  the  sea- 
men with  whom  the  women  had  tender  relations  had 
declared  for  days  their  intention  of  deserting  to  the 
mountains  and  there  remaining  until  the  Bounty  sailed. 
The  women  had  promised  to  assist  them,  even  though 
they  knew  Tina  would  resent  the  act  bitterly.  They 
trusted,  however,  that  after  Bligh  was  gone,  the  chief's 
love  for  his  sister  would  procure  their  pardon.  Only 
the  previous  day  Nuia  and  Alrema  and  two  other  girls 
named  Ohuna  and  Ahi,  who  were  devoted  to  two 
seamen  named  Millward  and  Churchill,  had  arranged 
to  steal  the  ship's  cutter  during  the  night,  land  some 
miles  down  the  coast  where  they  would  be  met  by 
Nuia  and  her  companions,  and  make  their  way  over 
the  mountains  to  Taravao — the  peninsula  that  con- 
'  George  Stewart,  midshipman. 


24  THE   MUTINEER 

nects  the  district  of  Taiarapu  with  Tahiti.  Here  they 
were  to  conceal  themselves  till  "  the  wrath  of  Tina 
had  ceased." 

"  To-night,  oh  friend  of  my  heart,"  said  Nuia, 
placing  her  cheek  against  the  bare  bosom  of  her 
friend  and  embracing  her  lovingly,  "  this  shall  be 
done.  Alrema's  lover,  Etuati,  who  hateth  the  chief  of 
the  ship  as  bitterly  as  does  thy  Kirisiani,  to-night 
again  keepeth  the  watch.  He  hath  taken  the  hands 
of  these  men  in  his  and  sworn  to  turn  away  his  face 
when  they  steal  the  boat  ;  and  to-night,  perhaps, 
will  my  Steua  escape  from  the  ship  and  come  to 
me.  Then,  one  by  one,  all  those  of  the  white  men 
that  hate  to  leave  this  land  of  ours  will  hide  away,  and 
the  Arii  Pirai '  will  trouble  not,  for  in  Taravao  it 
will  be  hard  for  him  to  seek  them  ?  " 

A  fierce  light  shone  in  Mahina's  eyes.  "  True,  how 
could  he  ?  And  yet  it  would  please  me  better  could  I 
see  Pirai  dead.  For  ever  is  he  saying  bitter  words  to 
the  man  I  love." 

Nuia  looked  at  her  companion  for  a  moment,  then 
rose,  and,  going  to  a  corner  of  the  house,  reached  her 
hand  up  to  the  thatch ;  then  she  took  down  a  pistol 
and  gave  it  to  her  friend. 

"  See,  this  is  the  little  gun  that  Pirai  the  captain  gave 
to  my  brother  Tina.  To-night  Alrema  gives  it  to  her 
lover,  who  hath  sworn  to  kill  Pirai  some  day  for  the 
foul  words  he  ever  gives  him,  even  as  he  speaks  foul 
words  to  thy  lover." 

Then  the    two  girls  separated — Nuia   to  give   the 

'  Captain  Bligh. 


WHITE    MEN    AND    BROWN    WOMEN      25 

pistol  into  Alrema's  hand  for  Young,  and  Mahina  to 
watch  for  her  lover,  should  Christian  come  ashore  in 
the  evening. 

At  one  o'clock  next  morning  Edward  Young  was 
again  keeping  anchor  watch.  It  was  dark  and  rainy 
and  no  one  else  was  to  be  seen  on  deck  but  the  sentry 
— ^John  Millward.  Presently  Young  felt  a  hand  on 
liis  shoulder,  and  heard  the  voice  of  Churchill,  the 
ship's  corporal — "  Mr.  Young  !  " 

"  For  heaven's  sake  be  careful,  Churchill  !  Are 
you  all  ready  ?  " 

"  Yes,  we've  got  the  second  cutter  alongside. 
Muspratt  is  in  her.  We've  eight  muskets  and  six 
bags  of  powder  and  ball.  Five  of  the  muskets  and 
some  ammunition  will  be  hidden  by  Alrema,  who 
will  be  watching  for  you  to  escape.  Why  don't  you 
come  now,  sir  r  There  are  half  a  dozen  others  ready 
to  do  so  !  " 

"  No,  no,  not  now.  I  must  get  away  alone. 
Alrema  will  let  you  know  when." 

"  Goodbye,  sir,"  whispered  Churchill. 

The  midshipman  pressed  his  hand,  and  the  corporal 
stepped  softly  along  the  deck,  till  he  reached  the  spot 
v/here  Millward  the  sentry  stood,  peering  anxiously 
out  into  the  gloom  which  enveloped  the  ship.  A 
quick  gesture  from  Churchill,  and  the  two  figures 
dropped  quietly  over  the  side  and  were  gone. 

For  some  minutes  Young  looked  for  the  boat 
through  the  darkness,  as  those  in  her  pulled  with 
muffled  oars  towards  the  shore. 

"  That's  satisfactory,"  muttered  the  young  man  to 


26  THE   MUTINEER 

himself;  "  that's  something  for  our  amiable  and  worthy 
commander  to  think  over  at  breakfast." 

Lieutenant  Bligh  did  think  over  it  at  breakfast ; 
and  soon  Young  was  in  irons  and  awaiting  a  pro- 
mised flogging  for  "  being  asleep  on  his  watch  and 
allowing  the  damned  scoundrels  to  desert,"  as  his 
commander  forcibly  expressed  it. 

Four  days  afterwards,  as  Christian  made  his  rounds 
of  the  ship  he  came  upon  Young,  still  in  leg  irons, 
waiting,  with  deadly  hatred  in  his  heart,  for  Bligh  to 
visit  him. 

In  the  bosom  of  his  shirt  lay  Tina's  pistol,  and  as 
the  figures  of  Christian  and  a  seaman  darkened  the 
entrance  to  the  stuffy  cabin  his  fingers  clutched  the 
weapon  savagely. 

"  They  are  all  taken,  Young,"  muttered  his  superior 
oflScer  ;  "they  gave  themselves  up  to  Bligh  this  morn- 
ing, and  are  now  on  board.  I  wish  with  all  my  heart 
I  could  set  you  free,  for  Bligh  swears  he  will  flog  you." 

"And  I  swear,  Christian,  that  he  shall  die  if  he 
attempts  it.  My  God  !  are  we  Englishmen  or  slaves  ?  " 

Christian  shook  his  head  gloomingly,  and  with  a 
pitying  look  at  the  young  man,  went  on  deck,  passing 
on  his  way  the  manacled  figures  of  the  three  captured 
men.  They  lay  together  in  the  sail  locker,  their 
backs  raw  and  bleeding  from  the  four  dozen  lashes 
which  they  had  each  received  in  the  morning. 

Their  dreams  of  and  dash  for  liberty  had  been 
brief.  Landing  at  the  spot  agreed  upon,  Nuia  and 
her  two  friends,  Ohuna  and  Ahi,  met  them  with  the 
warmest  demonstrations  of  affection  and  loyalty  ;  then 


WHITE    MEN   AND    BROWN    WOMEN       27 

they  learned  with  alarm  that  Oripah  and  Tamiri,  two 
of  Tina's  subsidiary  chiefs,  had  forbidden  the  people  in 
any  way  to  aid  or  shelter  them  ;  and  that  Tina  himself 
had  bitterly  reproached  his  sister  Nuia  for  her  share  in 
the  conspiracy — for  by  some  means  the  whole  plan  of 
escape  had  been  made  known  to  him.  Then  after  a 
hurried  discussion  the  three  deserters,  accompanied  by 
Ahi  and  another  girl  named  Tahinia,  set  out  again  for 
Tetuaroa,  a  group  of  low-lying  coral  islands  twenty- 
eight  miles  from  where  the  Bounty  lay.  There  they 
hoped  to  be  free  from  interference  ;  for  the  chief  of 
the  islands,  Miti,  was  related  to  Tahinia. 

But  when  half-way  across  a  furious  squall  drove 
them  back  to  the  mainland.  Landing  at  a  village 
called  Tetaha  the  deserters  remained  hidden  till  they 
were  surprised  by  Bligh  and  a  boat's  crew ;  and  although 
they  were  prepared  to  fight  to  the  last,  the  girls,  to 
their  surprise,  begged  them  to  surrender. 

"  Milwa,"  said  Nuia  to  Millward,  the  moment  they 
saw  Bligh  approaching,  accompanied  by  his  boat's 
crew  and  Tina,  "  waste  neither  these  men's  blood  nor 
thine.  Yield — and  I,  Nuia,  swear  that  the  ship  shall 
not  take  thee  away." 

Relying  on  the  repeated  assurances  of  the  girls, 
who  wept  in  the  earnestness  of  their  beseechings,  the 
three  deserters  came  out  of  the  house  and  stood  before 
Bligh  and  his  party. 

"  Surrender,  you  villains  !  "  he  cried. 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir,  we  surrender,"  answered  Churchill  ; 
and  under  his  breath  he  said  to  his  companions — "  to 
be  free  again  before  long." 


28  THE    MUTINEER 

When  the  men  were  brought  on  board,  Bligh, 
whose  face  was  livid  with  passion,  turned  to  Fletcher 
Christian. 

"  Muster  the  hands,  Mr.  Christian.  I'll  show  you 
and  the  others  like  you  whether  I  will  tolerate  this 
spirit  of  mutiny  and  disregard  of  my  orders." 

Then  in  sullen  silence  the  ship's  company  were 
mustered  on  the  main  deck  to  witness  the  flogging  of 
the  deserters. 

As  the  bleeding  form  of  Muspratt,  the  last  to  be 
punished,  and  the  greatest  sufferer,  was  led  away  from 
the  gratings,  one  of  the  boatswain's  mates  named 
Morrison  said  to  the  midshipman  Stewart  in  a  low 
voice  :  "  I'm  glad,  sir,  I  wasn't  picked  on  to  flog  poor 
Bill  Muspratt.  My  God,  sir,  how  long  is  this  to  go 
on  ?  The  men  are  bordering  on  mutiny.  Last  night 
the  captain  took  away  every  present  of  food  given  to 
us  by  the  natives  and  said  that  it  was  his,  and  that 
every  one  on  the  ship,  from  the  master  down,  was  a 
damned  thief." 

Stewart  gave  him  a  warning  glance  as  he  answered 
in  a  whisper  :  "  Don't  talk  to  me,  Morrison  ;  if  the 
captain  sees  you  it  means  the  cat." 

Ten  minutes  later,  as  Christian  was  employed  in 
hoisting  in  the  cutter,  Bligh's  imperious  tones  were 
heard   asking  for  him. 

"  Mr.  Christian,"  said  the  captain,  walking  up  to 
where  the  master's  mate  stood,  and  his  voice  quivered 
with  rage,  "  I  find  that  you  had  the  audacity  to  send 
a  coconut  to  that  scoundrel  Young  to  drink  just  now. 
By  the  Lord,  sir,  do  you  want  me  to  send  you  to  join 


WHITE    MEN    AND    BROWN    WOMEN      29 

him  ?  "  And  then  with  a  passionate  gesture  he 
turned  on  his  heel  and  again  sought  his  cabin. 

The  master's  mate,  with  blazing  eyes  and  face 
white  with  anger,  turned  and  looked  at  the  seamen 
who  stood  around  him  with  their  hands  on  the  boat- 
falls.  Not  a  word  escaped  his  lips,  but  in  their  eyes 
he  read  their  dangerous  sympathy. 

That  night  Bligh  slept  ashore  at  Tina's  house,  and 
when  all  but  the  anchor  watch  were  asleep  a  canoe 
glided  gently  alongside,  and  Mahina  and  Alrema 
stepped  on  deck  and  were  met  by  their  lovers. 
Young  had  secretly  been  released  from  his  irons  by 
Christian  the  moment  Bligh  had  left  the  ship.  For 
some  hours  the  four  conversed  earnestly  together,  then 
just  as  the  first  grey  streaks  of  dawn  began  to  pierce 
the  horizon  the  girls  embraced  the  two  men  tenderly 
and  went  quietly  back  to  their  canoe. 

Down  below,  as  Christian  was  replacing  the  hand- 
cuffs on  Young's  wrists,  the  midshipman  gripped  his 
companion's  arm. 

"  Christian,"  he  said,  "  as  God  is  my  judge  I  intend 
to  keep  faith  with  that  girl,  even  if  it  costs  me  my  life ; 
and  vou,  Christian,  are  you  made  of  stone  ?  Can  you 
leave  Mahina — to  lead  such  a  life  as  we  are  made  to 
live  ? " 

The  master's  mate  dashed  Young's  arm  aside. 
"  For  God's  sake,  man,  don't  ask  me.  My  brain  is 
on  fire,"  and  for  a  minute  or  two  he  walked  quickly 
to  and  fro,  seemingly  oblivious  of  the  other's  presence. 
Then  he  stopped  suddenly  and  faced  Young  with  a 
short,  bitter   laugh. 


30  THE    MUTINEER 

"  That  all  depends  on  what  happens.  If  BHgh 
treats  me  as  a  man  ...  I  will  pocket  his  past 
insults  .  .  .  and  prove  a  cruel,  heartless  scoundrel 
to  that  poor  girl.     If  he  does  not  .  .  ." 

He  finished  the  sentence  with  a  gesture  of  despair, 
and  went  on  deck. 


CHAPTER   IV 


cc 


THE    FIRST    SAILING    OF    THE    "BOUNTY 

THE  time  to  say  farewell  had  come  at  last,  and 
from  early  dawn  the  beach  was  crowded  with 
natives.  For  two  days  the  genial,  kindhearted  people 
had  entertained  their  white  friends  with  their  simple 
sports,  and  the  crew  of  the  Bounty — save  for  those 
who  lay  ironed  and  sweltering  in  her  'tween  decks — 
were  given  liberty  by  their  stern  captain.  Sometimes 
in  the  midst  of  the  mirth  and  song  that  prevailed 
during  the  hivas  or  dancing  of  the  natives,  strange 
spells  of  silence  would  fall,  and  Tina  the  chief  and  his 
stately  wife  would,  with  tears  streaming  from  their  eyes, 
leave  the  assembled  throng  and  retire  to  their  house. 
Tender-hearted,  simple,  and  affectionate,  they  had  con- 
ceived for  Bligh,  despite  his  occasional  outbursts  of 
passion  and  his  severe  treatment  of  the  ship's  company, 
a  sincere  and  lasting  respect ;  and  that  evening,  when  he 
came  ashore  dressed  in  his  full  uniform,  with  his  sword 
by  his  side,  smiling  in  that  engaging  manner  which 
seemed  so  natural  to  him  at  times,  even  those  few  of 
the   natives    who    feared   and    disliked    him    for   his 

31 


32  THE    MUTINEER 

tyranny,  demonstrated  at  least  their  respect  for  his  rank 
and  position  in  the  most  marked  and  earnest  manner. 

Long  past  midnight  the  singing  and  dancing  con- 
tinued, and  Bligh,  as  he  stood  on  the  beach,  grasping 
the  hands  of  Tina  and  Aitia  in  his,  was  content. 
Nearly  two-thirds  of  his  crew  were  ashore,  and  now 
as  he  stood  there  watching  he  saw  them  taking  fare- 
well of  their  native  friends,  who  with  the  most  extra- 
vagant demonstrations  of  sorrow,  begged  them  to 
remain  till  the  morning.  He  had  no  suspicion  that 
this  was  assumed  and  that  nearly  half  of  his  men  had 
whispered  to  some  taio  (male  friend)  or  pretty  girl, 
"  We  will  return  soon." 

"  Good-night,"  he  said  to  the  chief,  holding  out  his 
white  hand  again,  "good-night,  Tina  and  Aitia. 
Remember  that  to-morrow,  soon  after  daylight,  we 
sail.  Yet  I  shall  be  pleased  to  see  you  in  the  morn- 
ing." 

Then  the  boatswain's  whistle  sounded  for  the  men 
to  return  to  the  boats,  and  amid  the  weeping  of  those 
of  the  islanders  who  did  not  know  what  Mahina  and 
the  other  women  knew,  Bligh  and  his  men  called  out 
their  farewells  and  pulled  towards  the  ship. 

But  with  the  first  signs  of  dawn,  those  on  board, 
looking  shoreward,  saw  a  vast  concourse  of  natives  on 
that  part  of  the  beach  nearest  the  Bounty;  and  every 
few  minutes  numbers  of  people  of  both  sexes  were 
arriving  through  the  palm-groves  from  inland  villages, 
carrying  gifts  of  fruit  and  native  clothing,  intended 
as  parting  presents  for  the  voyagers.  The  waters,  too, 
of  the  little  bay  were  alive  with  canoes  ;  many  of  them 


THE  FIRST  SAILING  OF  THE  "BOUNTY"   33 

had  come  from  the  distant  villages  of  Taiarapu,  a 
day's  journey,  laden  to  the  water's  edge  with  simple 
tokens  of  affection  for  Bligh  and  his  crew.  As  the 
canoes  passed  under  the  Bounty  s  stern  on  their  way  to 
the  shore  the  people  in  them  were  much  affected 
when  they  noted  the  unmistakable  signs  of  the  ship's 
departure.  They  had  daily  heard  for  a  month  past 
from  Bligh  'himself  that  he  hoped  to  sail  on  the 
following  day,  but  the  continued  delays  seemed  to 
have  inspired  them  with  hope  ;  the  Bounty's  people, 
they  believed,  had  become  so  attached  to  their  island 
friends  that  they  could  not  part  from  them,  and  it  was 
even  possible,  to  their  simple  minds,  that  Bligh  would 
abandon  the  mission  on  which  he  was  sent  by  the 
unknown  King  of  England. 

Sitting  a  little  apart  from  the  others  and  apparently 
taking  no  heed  of  the  bustle  around  them,  the  girls 
Mahina  and  Nuia  conversed  with  each  other  in  low 
tones.  Alrema,  although  accused  by  Tina  of  helping 
his  sister  in  aiding  the  seamen  to  desert,  had  been 
forgiven,  and  was  just  then,  with  Aitia,  conveying  to 
Bligh  a  farewell  present  of  two  handsome  par  ah  or 
mourning  dresses,  which  were  to  be  given  to  King 
George. 

"  Mahina,"  and  Nuia  placed  her  hand  on  her  friend's 
shoulder,  "  all  will  yet  be  well.  Why  look  so  sad  ? 
Dost  thou  doubt  our  lovers'  promises  ?  See,  only  a 
little  while  ago,  Alrema  went  on  board  to  see  her 
lover  Etuati — he  who  is  now  bound  with  iron  rings 
on  his  hands  and  feet — and  this  he  said  to  her  :  'Tell 
those  that  love  us  that  we  will  return  to  Tahiti  ere  a 

4 


34  THE    MUTINEER 

moon  has  passed.'  Come,  my  friend,  let  us  go  to  the 
ship  for  the  last  time." 

By  this  time  the  Bounty  was  surrounded  by  hundreds 
of  canoes,  and  her  decks  were  thronged  with  natives 
who,  each  man  singling  out  his  particular  taio.,  or  v/hite 
friend,  pressed  upon  his  acceptance  some  farewell  gift. 
Bligh,  standing  on  the  quarter  deck,  was  conversing 
with  Aitia  and  her  husband,  and  behind  him  stood  a 
boatswain's  mate  holding  in  his  arms  two  muskets  and 
two  pistols,  with  bags  of  powder  and  ball.  These 
were  a  gift  from  the  commander  to  Aitia,  whose  skill 
as  a  markswoman  rendered  the  gift  specially  pleasing 
and  valuable. 

Raising  his  hat,  and  addressing  her  as  if  she  were 
some  great  English  lady,  the  captain  of  the  Bounty  said 
that  the  gifts  were  in  token  of  his  own  personal  liking 
for  her  and  her  husband,  and  as  a  proof  of  the  friend- 
ship of  the  king  of  Great  Britain.  Then,  while  a 
respectful  silence  fell  upon  every  one  on  board,  the 
stately  Aitia  touched  her  forehead  with  the  weapons 
one  after  another,  and  flinging  herself  at  Bligh's 
feet  clasped  them  in  her  hands  and  wept. 

Gently  disengaging  her  hands  the  commander 
straightened  his  slender  figure,  and  his  sharp  tones 
rang  out  :  "  Clear  the  decks,  Mr.  Christian  ;  and  you, 
Tina,  ask  your  people  to  get  into  their  canoes.  Aitia, 
goodbye  ;  Tina,  goodbye." 

Christian,  who  had  just  bidden  a  hurried,  passionate 
farewell  to  Mahina,  sprang  to  the  ship's  forecastle  and 
then  some  of  the  seamen  manned  the  little  capstan  ; 
the  fiddler  took  his  seat  upon  its  head  and  scraped  a 


THE  FIRST  SAILING  OF  THE  "BOUNTY"  35 

dismal  tune,  every  now  and  then  breaking  off  in  the 
middle  of  a  bar  to  wave  his  bow  to  some  Tahitian 
friend  whom  he  knew,  as  he  or  she  went  over  the  side 
to  a  canoe.  The  ship  was  already  hove  short  ;  and  a 
few  fathoms  of  the  great  hemp  cable  flaked  upon  the 
deck  soon  brought  the  anchor  to  the  cathead.  The 
topsails  bellied  out  as  the  wind  filled  them  ;  the  men 
sprang  aloft  to  man  the  yards  at  the  word  of  command 
from  Bligh,  who  had  explained  to  Tina  that  with  this 
ceremony  and  the  firing  of  guns  the  ships  of  King 
George  saluted  the  sovereigns  of  other  nations  ;  but  as 
the  gun-firing  might  injure  the  breadfruit  plants  on 
board  it  would  be  omitted.  The  sailors  aloft  gave  a 
last  cheer,  the  water  began  to  ripple  and  bubble  under 
the  bluiF  bows  of  the  Bounty  and  from  the  crowd  of 
sorrowing  people  burst  a  cry  of  "  loarana  no  ti  atua 
t't  "  ("  May  the  gods  protect  thee  for  ever  and 
ever"). 

A  pufF  rippled  across  the  bay,  the  ship  lay  over  to  it 
and  sped  quickly  towards  the  passage  between  the  roar- 
ing lines  of  surf  which  leapt  and  seethed  upon  the 
shelving  ledges  of  coral  reef.  In  another  five  minutes 
the  vessel's  bows  rose  and  fell  to  the  sweep  of  the  ocean 
swell,  and  the  Bounty  stood  out  into  the  open  sea. 

Then  those  who  watched  from  the  shore  saw  her 
square  her  yards  and  head  to  the  south,  for  Bligh 
intended  to  call  at  the  Friendly  Islands  before  proceed- 
ing to  the  West  Indies.  Hour  after  hour,  and  still  the 
people  watched  the  lessening  canvas  of  the  ship  sink 
below  the  horizon.  Towards  noon  the  breeze  failed, 
gnd  not  till  the  green  shadows  of  the  mountains  turned 


36  THE    MUTINEER 

into  a  soft  purple  under  the  rays  of  the  setting  sun  was 
the  white  speck  lost  to  sight. 

Then  Mahina  and  Nuia,  who  were  the  last  to  go, 
turned  sadly  away  and  went  home  to  their  dwellings 
of  thatch  to  wait  and  hope. 


CHAPTER  V 


THE      LAST      STRAW 


FOR  thirteen  days  the  Bounty  had  sailed  westward 
over  a  placid  sea,  the  light  south-east  trades 
which  filled  her  canvas  scarce  causing  more  than  a 
noiseless  ripple  under  her  forefoot.  On  the  morning  of 
the  fourteenth  day  she  sailed  through  a  cluster  of  low- 
lying,  richly-verdured  islands — the  Namulca  Group, 
and  dropped  her  anchor  in  ten  fathoms,  in  the  clear, 
motionless  waters  of  a  reef-enclosed  spot  oflF  the  main 
island.  The  day  was  beautifully  fine  but  intensely 
hot,  and  the  dying  wind  gave  the  ship  scarcely  way 
enough  to  bring  her  to  an  anchor. 

In  a  very  short  time  Bligh  had  opened  communica- 
tion with  the  natives  of  Namuka — a  fierce,  muscular 
race,  who,  however,  professed  friendship,  agreeing  to 
let  him  procure  such  supplies  as  he  wanted  from  the 
island,  and  promising  their  assistance  in  wooding  and 
watering  the  ship.  The  calm  and  dignified  manner 
of  the  commander  seemed  to  impress  the  savage,  in- 
tractable, and  treacherous  Tongans  as  it  had  tiie  gentle 

37 


38  THE  MUTINEER 

and  kindly-natured  Tahitians ;  and  Bligh  again 
showed  those  peculiar  phases  of  his  character  which 
made  him  treat  even  the  most  dangerous  natives 
with  humanity  and  forbearance,  and  yet  toward  his 
officers  and  crew  behave  with  undeserved,  terrible 
severity. 

As  soon  as  the  captain  returned  on  board,  in  sharp, 
fretful  tones  he  ordered  the  boats  away  ;  one  under  the 
command  of  Mr.  Nelson,  the  botanist,  and  another 
with  Christian  in  charge,  to  wood  and  water  the  ship. 

For  some  hours  the  work  went  on  without  inter- 
ference, till  the  natives,  all  of  whom  were  armed  with 
spears,  clubs,  and  slings,  began  to  surround  the  white 
men  and  steal  everything  they  could  lay  their  hands 
upon.  Some  of  them  actually  took  the  casks  of  water 
from  Christian's  men  and  rolled  them  away  into  the 
coconut  groves.  Every  moment  their  demeanour 
became  more  threatening  and  their  insulting  gestures 
and  language  were  so  unmistakable  that  Christian  got 
his  men  together  in  order  to  cover  the  boats,  and 
then  paused  irresolutely  as  to  his  next  course  of  action. 
For  Bligh  had  given  orders  that  no  matter  how  the 
natives  behaved  they  were  not  to  be  molested,  and  on 
no  excuse  were  they  to  be  fired  upon. 

In  a  few  minutes  their  numbers  had  so  increased 
that  they  began  to  show  signs  of  making  a  rush  upon 
Christian's  scanty  force,  evidently  mistaking  his  for- 
bearance for  fear  ;  and  soon  some  hundreds  of  them 
attempted  to  cut  him  off  from  the  boats.  It  was  only 
at  this  juncture  that  he  gave  orders  to  fire  a  volley 
over  the  heads  of  the  now  advancing  and  yelling  body 


THE   LAST    STRAW  39 

of  savages.  To  this  they  responded  with  derisive 
jeers,  shaking  their  spears  and  clubs  and  calling  out 
'' Mate  !  mati  !  "  ("Kill!    kill!"). 

With  great  difficulty  Christian  got  his  men  back 
into  the  boats  without  injury  being  inflicted  on  either 
side,  and  reported  himself  to  Bligh,  who  severely 
reprimanded  him. 

Wiping  the  beads  of  perspiration  from  his  face,  the 
young  man  replied  to  his  commander's  censure  :  "  It 
is  impossible,  sir,  to  carry  on  the  duty  unless  some 
steps  are  taken  to  prevent  the  landing  party  from 
being  cut  ofF  by  the  natives." 

"  You  are  a  damned  cowardly  lot  of  fellows ! " 
sneered  Bligh ;  "  and  is  it  possible  that  you,  Mr. 
Christian,  an  officer  in  the  King's  Service,  are  afraid  of 
a  troop  of  savages  while  you  and  your  men  have  fire- 
arms ?  " 

Christian's  face  paled  and  his  limbs  shook  as  if  in  a 
fit  of  ague  :  "  Our  arms  are  of  no  avail,  sir,  while  you 
forbid  their  use." 

"  Carry  on  the  work  and  don't  attempt  to  argue 
with  me,"  was  the  contemptuous  answer. 

So  with  wrath  eating  his  heart  out  Christian  went 
back  to  his  task,  and  by  almost  superhuman  endurance 
and  forbearance  managed  to  complete  the  wooding 
and  watering  of  the  ship. 

At  last  the  work  was  finished,  and  the  Bounty  once 
more  at  sea,  and  on  the  afternoon  of  the  26th  of  April 
she  lay  becalmed  between  Namuka  and  the  island  of 
Tofoa,  whose  sharp-pointed  volcanic  cone  could  be 
seen  thirty  miles  away,  with  thin  blue  curls  of  smoke 


40  THE  MUTINEER 

ascending  from  its  hidden  fires  into  the  windless 
atmosphere,  while  the  sea  was  of  glassy  calmness  and 
the  ship  drifted  steadily  to  the  eastward. 

Pacing  to  and  fro  upon  the  quarter  deck,  with  the 
red  fury  spot  showing  upon  his  pale  cheeks,  the 
captain  presently  said,  in  his  quick,  angry  way,  as  his 
eye  glanced  along  the  deck — 

"  Morrison,  send  Mr.  Christian  here." 

It  was  Fletcher  Christian's  watch  on  deck,  and  he 
at  once  responded. 

"  Mr.  Christian,  what  has  become  of  the  pile  of 
drinking  coconuts  which  was  stowed  between  the 
guns  ?  Some  scoundrel  has  taken  them.  I  demand 
to  know  who  was  the  person  !  " 

"  I  cannot  tell  you,  sir,  what  has  become  of  them." 

"  You  mean  you  will  not.  By  heavens,  sir,  you 
shall  !  I  have  no  doubt  that  whoever  took  them  did 
so  with  the  sanction  of  the  officers." 

A  lump  rose  in  Christian's  throat  and  his  voice 
sounded  hoarsely. 

"  I  think,  sir,  that  you  are  mistaken." 

"  We  shall  see  !  Pass  the  word  for  all  the  officers 
to  come  on  deck." 

In  a  few  minutes  they  were  all  assembled,  and 
Bligh,  now  in  a  fever  heat  of  unreasoning  passion, 
attacked  them  in  the  same  manner.  For  some  seconds 
no  one  answered  ;  then  Fryer  the  master,  and  Christian 
and  Young  assured  him  each  in  turn  that  they  had 
not  seen  any  of  the  men  take  the  coconuts. 

"Then,"  said  Bligh,  and  his  thin,  clean-cut  lips 
curled  contemptuously,  "you  have  taken  them  your- 


THE    LAST    STRAW  41 

selves  !  Mr.  Elphinstone,"  turning  to  the  junior 
master's  mate,  "  bring  every  coconut  in  the  ship  on 
deck." 

"  Now,"  went  on  Bligh,  as  four  or  five  seamen 
came  on  the  poop  carrying  bunches  of  coconuts, 
which  they  placed  in  heaps  on  the  deck,  "  please  tell 
me,  each  of  you,  which  of  these  heaps  you  individually 
claim." 

The  officers  spoke  in  turn,  and  then  but  one  heap  of 
coconuts  remained — that  belonging  to  Christian. 

"  Is  this  yours,  Mr.  Christian  ?  "  said  Bligh,  in  a 
voice  trembling  with  passion. 

"  I  really  do  not  know,  sir.  It  is  difficult  to  tell 
one  pile  of  coconuts  from  another  ;  but  I  hope  you 
don't  think  me  mean  enough  to  steal  yours." 

"  By  God,  sir,  I  do  !  You  must  have  stolen  these 
from  me  or  you  could  give  a  better  account  of  them  ! 
You  infernal  rascals  !  You  are  all  thieves  alike  and 
combine  with  the  men  to  rob  me.  I  will  flog  you  all 
and  make  some  of  you  jump  overboard  before  we  reach 
Endeavour  Straits." 

Calling  Samuel  his  clerk,  Bligh  ordered  all  the  grog 
to  be  stopped,  and  only  half  a  pound  of  yams  to  be 
served  to  each  officer's  mess  in  the  future — and  a 
quarter  of  a  pound  only  if  a  single  yam  was  missed. 
And  then,  his  handsome  features  distorted  with  rage, 
and  muttering  curses,  he  turned  upon  his  heel  and 
went  below. 

The  officers  stood  and  eyed  each  other  with  anger 
and  amazement,  and  began  to  complain  audibly  ;  but 
Christian,  with  a  strange  look  in  his  dark  eyes,  ordered 


42  THE   MUTINEER 

them  in  a  hoarse  and  broken  voice,  some  to  their 
duty,  others  to  their  watch  below. 

When  eight  bells  struck  he  was  relieved  by  the 
master  and  went  to  his  cabin. 

And  Edward  Young,  as  he  watched  Fletcher 
Christian  pass  him,  with  his  hands  clenched  and  his 
face  blanched  to  a  deathly  white,  smiled  to  himself  and 
said,  "  It  is  the  last  straw." 


CHAPTER    VI 


THE    RUBICON 


WHEN  Christian  reached  his  cabin  he  threw 
himself  upon  his  ssa-chest — almost  the  only 
article  of  furniture  that  the  place  contained — and 
cursed  aloud  his  wretched  existence.  He  thought  of 
the  long  voyage  before  him,  each  day  wearisome 
enoi'gh  even  if  spent  in  agreeable  companionship  with 
his  fellows,  but  a  very  purgatory  with  such  a  man  as 
Bligh  to  goad  him  every  hour  with  foul  language 
and  petty  insults. 

His  gloomy  reflections  were  broken  in  upon  by  a 
Voice  asking  permission  for  the  speaker  to  enter. 

"What  do  you  want  ?  "  he  asked  angrily. 

A  seaman  drew  aside  the  canvas  screen. 

"  The  captain  sends  his  compliments,  sir,  ana 
requests   the  pleasure   of  your   company   to  supper." 

Christian  sprang  to  his  feet,  his  face  flaming  with 
passion.  "  Tell  him  to  go  to  the  devil  and  take  his 
supper  in  the  only  company  he  is  fit  for." 

Alexander  Smith,  the  sailor  who  had  brought  the 
message,  for  a  moment  stared  in  astonishment,  yet 

43 


44  THE    MUTINEER 

waited  in  respectful  silence.  This  was  the  first  time 
during  all  the  long  voyage  that  an  officer  had  so  far 
forgotten  himself  as  to  express  his  feelings  about  the 
commander  before  a  common  seaman.  With  the 
seamen  themselves  such  outbursts  were  frequent 
enough,  but  here  was  an  officer — the  senior  master's 
mate,  the  third  man  in  rank  in  the  ship — ordering  a 
common  sailor  to  tell  his  commander  to  go  to  the 
devil,  the  only  fit  company  for  him  ! 

Smith  was  a  young  man  of  twenty-two,  the  son  of 
a  Thames  lighterman  ;  but  he  had  been  born  with 
brains,  and  had  taught  himself  to  read  and  write, 
while  his  mother  had  brought  him  up  to  do  his  duty 
and  respect  his  superiors  in  that  old  fashion  which  is 
good.  This  was  his  first  voyage  in  a  King's  ship, 
but  he  knew  what  was  due  from  Christian  to  his 
commander. 

So,  instead  of  smiling,  either  openly  or  covertly,  at 
Christian's  rage,  he  thought  for  a  moment,  pulled 
awkwardly  at  a  lock  of  his  hair,  gave  a  slight  cough, 
and  said — 

"  Begging  your  pardon,  Mr.  Christian,  did  you  say 
that  I  was  to  tell  the  captain  you  felt  too  poorly,  and 
kindly  asked  to  be  excused  ?  " 

Christian  glanced  quickly  at  him,  and  then  forgot 
his  anger.  The  sailor  was  not  much  to  look  at,  a 
strongly-built  fellow  below  the  middle  height,  with 
his  face  pitted  deeply  from  the  effects  of  small-pox, 
and  his  naked  chest  disfigured  with  tatoo  marks — a 
coarse,  rough  seaman  in  dress  and  appearance,  a 
gentleman  in  instincts — and,  above  all,  a  man. 


THE   RUBICON  +5 

"  Smith,  you're  a  good  fellow  to  bring  me  up  with  a 
round  turn  like  that !  Give  me  your  hand,  and  deliver 
your  own  message,  and  accept  my  gratitude  ! "  And 
the  officer  grasped  the  sailor's  hand  and  wrung  it 
warmly. 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir,"  and  Smith's  honest  tones 
trembled  with  pleasure,  for  he  liked  and  respected 
the  young  man,  and  felt  proud  of  having  thus  won 
his  confidence.  "  A  few  months  longer,  sir,  and  it'll 
be  all  serene  with  us."  Then,  with  a  respectful 
salute,  he  was  gone. 

The  master's  mate  sat  down  again  on  the  chest, 
and  leant  his  cheek  upon  his  hands.  The  last  words 
of  Smith — "  a  few  months  longer  " — had  once  more 
set  his  brooding  mind  to  work. 

He  rose  to  his  feet  again  ;  the  close,  hot  atmosphere 
of  his  stuffy  quarters  seemed  to  oppress  and  choke  him, 
and  his  brain  was  dulled  and  aching  with  the  misery  in 
his  heart.  He  stepped  out,  and,  gaining  the  deck 
quietly,  leant  upon  the  bulwarks  and  looked  moodily 
over  the  star-lit  ocean  to  where  the  steep  cone  of 
Tofoa  upreared  its  darkened  form  three  thousand  feet 
in  the  air.  It  was  the  first  dog-watch,  when  on  ship- 
board men  sing  and  make  merry  ;  but  on  this  ship 
came  no  sounds  of  violin  or  choruses  of  seamen,  for 
all,  officers  and  men  alike,  were  sullen  and  gloomy, 
and  brooded  over  the  incidents  of  the  past  few 
days. 

The  wind  was  very  light,  and  the  ship  scarce  held 
steerage  way  ;  everything  was  still,  and  the  grave- 
like silence  oppressed   the    man.     Now    and    then    a 


46  THE   MUTINEER 

gleam  of  red,  smoky  flame  would  flash  in  the  sky  to 
the  eastward,  and  a  strange,  dulled  muttering  would  be 
borne  over  the  waters  as  the  raging  forces  pent  up  in 
black  Tofoa  boiled  and  seethed  within  its  groaning 
heart.  The  sight  possessed  a  fascination  for  him,  and 
for  nearly  half  an  hour  he  stood  and  watched  the 
shooting  dull-red  flame  and  listened  to  the  awful 
sounds  which  broke  from  the  mountain  in  the 
violence  of  its  convulsions. 

Presently  he  changed  his  attitude  of  dejection,  and 
his  eye  lightened. 

"Ten  miles  away,"  he  muttered,  gazing  at  the 
dark  shape  of  Tofoa,  "and  there  are  beaches  on  the 
west  side  where  landing  is  easy,  and  a  network  of  low 
islets  within  another  six  leagues.  By  heavens,  I'll  risk 
it !  Anything  is  better  than  this — better,  even,  the 
jaws  of  a  shark  ! " 

He  went  quietly  forward  and  collected  a  number  of 
boat-oars  and  some  hand-spikes  from  the  racks  ;  these 
he  brought  to  a  place  in  the  after  part  of  the  ship, 
where  he  was  not  likely  to  be  seen,  and  began  to  lash 
them  together. 

He  was  interrupted  suddenly  by  Young.  "What 
the  h — 1  are  you  doing.  Christian  ?  " 

"I  am  making  a  raft." 

"  A  raft  ? " 

"  Yes,  a  raft." 

«  Why  ?     What  for  ?  " 

"  Because,  Young,  I  can  stand  this  no  longer.  I 
am  about  to  try  and  make  Tofoa  on  this  raft." 

"  Madness  !      You   could  never  reach  there,  even 


THE   RUBICON  47 

if  there  were  no  sharks.     There  is  a  fearful  current 
setting  to  the  westward." 

"I  don't  care.  Sharks  are  better  company  than 
this  infernal  tyrant.  Why,  do  you  know,  Young, 
that  the  damned,  pitiful  scoundrel  actually  invited  me 
to  sup  with  him  to-night,  no  doubt  thinking  to 
propitiate  me  for  the   insults  of  this  afternoon." 

"Oh,  well,  you've  suffered  no  more  than  I.  But 
still,  this  is  sheer  madness.  Christian.  You  are  not, 
surely,  such  a  fool  as  to  incur  all  the  odium  of 
becoming  a  deserter,  for  what  ? — to  be  turned  into 
shark's  meat  !  " 

"  Don't  argue  with  me,  Young,"  he  answered 
fiercely.  "  I've  made  up  my  mind  to  get  out  of  this 
floating  hell,  and  I  mean  to  leave  the  ship  either  in  the 
first  or  middle  watch.  You  know  of  my  intention. 
If  you  think  it  your  duty,  tell  the  gentle  Bligh." 

Young  laughed.  "  Not  I,  Christian.  I'll  not 
move  in  the  matter,  except  to  dissuade  you  from 
such  folly." 

"  Cease,  cease,  my  dear  fellow  ;  it  is  too  late. 
Either  this,  or  I  put  an  end  to  my  life.  But  if  your 
sympathies  are  with  me,  do  me  this  favour — go  to  the 
steward  and  on  some  pretence  or  other  get  me  food. 
Put  it  in  a  bag  with  some  nails  and  hoop-iron  and 
beads,  or  anything  likely  to  take  the  fancy  of  the 
natives,  and  bring  it  to  me." 

Young  at  once  went  away,  and  procuring  a  canvas 
bag  put  in  it  food,  some  bottles  of  water,  and  a  few 
articles  for  barter.  But  at  the  same  time  he  told  the 
boatswain's  mate  of  Christian's  watch  and  the  officers 


48  THE    MUTINEER 

in  charge  of  the  first  and  middle  watches,  and  begged 
them  to  keep  the  matter  secret,  but  on  no  account  to 
give  the  young  man  an  opportunity  of  carrying  out 
his  rash  project,  "for,"  said  he  earnestly,  "Mr. 
Christian  is  not  in  a  fit  state  to  leave  the  ship  ;  the 
man  is  ill  in  mind  and  body,  and  not  responsible  for 
his  actions." 

Slowly  the  night  passed,  and  more  than  once 
Christian  came  on  deck  with  the  intention  of  putting 
his  idea  of  escape  into  practice  ;  but  he  always  found 
some  one  ready  to  talk  to  him,  and  so  no  opportunity 
came.  At  half-past  three  he  gave  up  all  further 
attempts,  and  sick  in  mind,  lay  down  in  his  bunk. 
Then  eight  bells  struck,  and  he  was  called  by  Stewart 
to  take  the  morning  watch. 

As  Stewart  turned  to  go  on  deck  he  pressed 
Christian's  hand  sympathetically,  and  said  in  a  low 
voice,  "  Mr.  Christian,  I  know  your  design.  For 
God's  sake,  sir,  try  to  have  patience,  and  give  up 
your  intention.  If  you  carry  it  out,  it  only  means  a 
dreadful  death." 

"  I  will  make  no  further  attempt  to-night,  at  least," 
he  answered,  in  a  strange,  husky  voice  ;  but  he  gave 
the  midshipman's  hand  a  firm  grip. 

For  some  minutes  he  sat  upon  his  sea-chest,  with 
his  face  buried  in  his  hands,  thinking  ;  and  the  darkness 
of  the  night,  the  hoarse  mutterings  and  muffled 
thunder  from  distant  Tofoa,  found  a  responsive  echo 
in  his  maddened  brain. 

The  signs  of  dawn  were  reddening  the  horizon  as 
Christian  reached  the  deck ;  and  the  black  pall  of  smoke 


THE    RUBICON  49 

which  had  hovered  over  Tofoa's  lofty  peak  was 
vanishing  before  the  breath  of  a  light  air  which  was 
coming  over  the  water  from  the  south-east  but  had 
not  yet  stirred  the  Bounty's  canvas. 

Thomas  Hayward,  the  midshipman  of  the  watch, 
had  mustered  his  men  ;  the  wheel  had  been  relieved, 
the  look-out  stationed,  and  those  of  the  watch  who 
were  not  needed  had  gone  forward  to  lay  about  the 
deck  to  doze  or  sleep. 

Leaning  over  the  forecastle  rail  the  look-out  stood 
watching  the  movement  of  a  huge  shark  that  swam 
to  and  fro,  close  to  the  ship's  port  side.  Presently 
Young,  whose  attention  was  drawn  to  the  monster 
by  the  seaman,  leant  over  the  waist  and  watched  also, 
and  shuddered  as  he  thought  of  Christian  and  his  raft  ; 
then,  knowing  that  Christian  would  not  disturb  him, 
he  lay  down  between  two  guns. 

Pacing  to  and  fro  on  the  starboard  side  of  the  little 
poop  the  master's  mate  was  waiting  for  the  breeze 
to  reach  the  ship,  to  give  the  order  to  brace  the  yards 
round  to  meet  it.  Perhaps  had  that  light,  cooling 
air  which  was  now  sweeping  away  sulphurous  smoke 
from  Tofoa's  black  sides,  reached  the  silent  ship  and 
sent  the  crew  hurrying  about  her  decks,  the  desperate 
deed  that  was  so  soon  to  follow  would  never  have  been 
done.  But  as  Christian  looked  aloft,  he  saw  the 
pendant  topsails  give  a  feeble  flap  or  two  and  then 
hang  limp  and  dead  as  before  ;  a  faint  breath  of  air 
touched  his  burning  temples,  and  then  silence,  deep 
and  oppressive,  fell  upon  the  ship  again. 

"  A  dead  calm  still,"  he  muttered  to  himself ;  "  I 
5 


50  THE  MUTINEER 

wish  to  God  a  squall  would  put  us  on  our  beam  ends  or 
founder  the  sliip — anything  but  this."  And  then  he 
stepped  to  the  side  and  watched,  with  a  curious  sense 
of  fascination,  the  sullen  massof  the  burning  mountain. 

The  utter  impossibility  of  his  leaving  the  ship  unless 
to  die  by  the  teeth  of  the  sharks  was  now  forced  upon 
his  mind,  for  there  beneath  the  counter  he  saw 
swimming  to  and  fro  a  brute  that  would  have  made 
short  work  of  him  upon  the  fragile  raft  on  which  he 
had  thought  to  venture  his  life.  But  yet — and  his 
hands  clenched  savagely — submission  to  his  lot  was 
not  possible — better  death  itself  than  endure  it  longer. 

Then  his  thoughts  went  back  to  a  night  on  the 
white  beach  at  Tahiti,  the  murmuring  sway  and  rustle 
of  plumed  palms,  and  the  soft  symphony  of  the 
throbbing  surf  on  the  distant  reef,  as  Mahina's  starlike 
eyes,  dimmed  with  her  farewell  tears,  looked  past  his 
own  into  the  cloudless  vault  of  heaven  above  them  ; 
and  her  passionate  pleadings  as  she  placed  her  trembling 
hands  upon  his  arm  seemed  even  now  to  be  borne  to 
him  across  the  sea,  and  made  the  quick,  hot  blood  or 
youth  surge  madly  through  his  veins.  Madness  to 
think  of  her  now  !  Yes,  he  knew  that ;  but  yet 
she  loved  him — would  give  her  life  for  him,  even.  A 
savage  !  And  he  a  King's  officer,  yet  a  slave  to  a 
vindictive  tyrant — his  life  one  daily  round  of  insult 
and  shame.  ...  A  savage,  yet  a  gloriously  beautiful 
woman,  whom  only  his  duty  to  his  King  and  country 
made  him  forget. 

Then  his  face  flushed  hotly.  Forget  her  !  What 
folly  to  try  to  deceive  himself !     He  loved  her  !  .  .  . 


THE    RUBICON  51 

He  struck  his  clenched  hand  on  the  rail,  and  then  his 
brain  caught  fire,  his  breath  came  in  short,  quick  gasps, 
and  the  way  out  flashed  into  his  mind. 

What  would  be  his  life  at  sea  ?  Bligh,  even  if 
suffered  until  the  ship  returned  to  England,  was  not 
the  only  coarse,  cruel  tyrant  in  the  Service.  And  it 
would  be  at  least  seven  months  ere  the  voyage  was 
ended — seven  months  of  torture,  shame  and  misery. 
And  over  there,  far  beyond  the  sea-rim  lay  at  least 
happiness  with  one  who  loved  him. 

What  did  it  matter  after  all  ?  Perhaps  after  long, 
long  years  of  service  he  would  be  put  aside  for  other 
and  younger  men  who  had  influence  and  social 
position.  But  then,  he  thought,  he  was  an  officer, 
a  man  of  good  family.  The  insults  he  had  received 
might  be  forgotten  were  he  one  of  the  rough,  coarse 
seamen  for'ard — such  a  man,  for  instance,  as  Quintal 
who,  when  brutally  flogged  by  Bligh,  swore  he  would 
kill  his  oppressor.  But  a  seaman  forgot  and  forgave  a 
flogging,  and  an  oflScer  and  a  gentleman  must  forget 
and — no,  not  forgive — an  insult  from  his  superior. 

So,  as  he  paced  to  and  fro  on  the  little  poop  and  as 
the  dawn  began  to  break  he  sought  to  get  rid  of  the 
devil  tempting  him  ;  but  he  sought  in  vain.  Again 
and  again  Mahina's  soft  voice  and  choking  sobs 
sounded  in  his  ears.  "  I  will  love  thee  for  ever  and 
ever  and  ever ;  how  canst  thou  leave  me  ? " 

Then  the  way  out  came  into  his  heart  again.  It  was 
so  easy  of  accomplishment,  too.  He  stopped  suddenly  in 
his  hurried  pacing  to  and  fro  and  his  quick  mutterings  ; 
for  the  man  at  the  wheel  was  regarding  him  curiously. 


52  THE   MUTINEER 

"  My  God  !  "  he  muttered  to  himself,  then  cried  aloud 
"  I'll  do  it  !  "     He  stepped  to  the  break  of  the  poop. 

"  Hayward,"  he  called  in  a  hoarse  whisper. 

Hay  ward  jumped  up  from  the  hatch  where  he  had 
been  lying  and  came  to  the  foot  of  the  poop  ladder. 

"  Did  you  call  me,  sir  ?  " 

"Yes" — and  his  voice  seemed  like  the  voice  or 
another  man  to  the  speaker  himself — "come  up  here 
and  look  after  her.  I  want  to  go  below  and  lash  up 
my  hammock." 

The  midshipman  looked  inquiringly  at  him.  "  You 
are  ill,  sir,"  he  said  ;  "  better  get  into  your  hammock 
instead.  Hallet  is  sleeping  on  deck.  Let  me  call  him 
to  relieve  you." 

"  No,"  and  his  voice  had  a  strange,  sharp  ring  in  it  ; 
"come  up  here." 

"  You  are  not  thinking  of  that  raft  again,  Mr. 
Christian  ?  There's  been  a  shark  swimming  round 
the  ship  all  night." 

"  Damn  you,  come  up  here  when  I  tell  you." 

"  Very  well,  sir,"  said  Hayward  in  a  changed  voice, 
and  he  walked  aft  to  the  binnacle  without  another 
word. 

Christian  ran  forward.  The  men  of  his  watch  lay 
sleeping  on  the  fore-hatch,  and  among  them  he  was 
quick  to  recognise  two  seamen,  Quintal  and  McCoy, 
men  who  had  been  severely  punished  for  trivial 
offences  by  Bligh.  Both  were  good  seamen,  and, 
with  Alexander  Smith,  had  a  particular  liking  for 
Christian,  who  had  treated  them  with  a  great  deal  of 
kindness.      The    master's    mate,    now    that   he    had 


THE    RUBICON  53 

determined  to  take  the  plunge,  seemed  to  have  rapidly 
sketched  in  his  mind  a  feasible  plan  of  action.  He 
stooped  down  and  awakened  both  of  them  quietly. 

The  men  sprang  to  their  feet  and  would  have  called 
the  rest  of  the  sleeping  watch,  but  with  a  warning 
gesture  Christian  stopped  them.  Then  he  motioned 
them  to  follow  him  to  the  waist  of  the  ship. 

"Listen,"  said  he,  speaking  quickly;  "I  have 
determined  to  take  charge  of  this  ship.  Captain 
Bligh  is  no  longer  fit  to  command  her.  You  two 
know  him — and  you   knotu   me  !  " 

The  seamen,  half  dazed  at  the  suddenness  of  the  ques- 
tion, hesitated  a  moment.  "  My  God,  men  !  "  he  said 
hoarsely,  "  answer  me.  Heavens  !  Why  do  you 
hesitate  ?  Are  you  men  or  cowards  ?  You,  Quintal, 
will  you  help  me  ?  " 

"  Help  you,  sir  ?  "  and  Matthew  Quintal,  a  young 
man  of  scarce  twenty-one  years,  seized  his  jumper  on 
either  side  with  his  brawny  hands  and  showed  his 
broad,  tattooed  chest.  "  I  don't  know  what  you  mean, 
sir,  but  I'll  follow  you  to  hell." 

"  Good  ;  and  now,  McCoy,  you  ?  " 

A  grim  smile  flickered  over  McCoy's  features. 
Like  Quintal  he  was  tattooed  on  both  chest  and 
arms,  and  was  a  broad-shouldered,  strongly-made 
man,  with  deep-set  eyes  and  a  face  denoting  un- 
daunted courage  and  resolution. 

"I  am  with  you,  sir,  and  with  Mat  Quintal." 

"  Go  you  then,  McCoy,  and  rouse  the  armourer. 
Tell  him  I  want  the  key  of  the  arm-chest  to  shoot  a 
shark.     You,  Quintal,  rouse  up  Churchill,  Muspratt, 


54  THE   MUTINEER 

and  Millward,  and  remind  them  of  the  flogging  Bligh 
gave  them  at  Tahiti ;  then  bring  them  quietly  to  me." 

The  men  stepped  softly  below  to  the  'tween  decks 
to  carry  out  their  orders.  As  soon  as  their  backs 
were  turned  young  Smith,  who,  unobserved  by  Chris- 
tian, lay  awake  upon  the  main-hatch,  rose  and  came 
towards  the  officer. 

"  What  are  you  about  to  do,  Mr.  Christian  ?  "  he 
said  in  whispered  tones.  "  I  heard  your  orders.  Stop 
them,  sir,  before  it  is  too  late,  for  God's  sake  !  " 

"  Ah,  Smith,  is  that  you  ?  It  is  too  late,  too  late 
now.  Will  you  sail  under  my  orders,  or  will  you 
make  me  shoot  you,  as  I  certainly  will  do  if  you  give 
the  alarm  ?  " 

The  young  seaman's  face  paled.  "  Your  threat, 
sir,  would  not  stop  me  if  I  had  not  already  decided. 
I  don't  like  to  join  in  a  mutiny,  but  it  is  your  act, 
sir,  and  not  mine  ;  and  you  will  have  to  answer  for  it, 
not  me.  Captain  Bligh  is  no  friend  of  mine  ;  and  I'll 
never  desert  a  gentleman  like  you  for  him.  You  can 
count  on  me,  sir." 

Christian  took  his  hand  and  gripped  it  fiercely. 
Then  McCoy  returned  with  the  key  of  the  arm- 
chest,  which  was  kept  aft  ;  following  him  up  the 
ladder  came  Quintal,  accompanied  by  a  fair-haired  lad 
named  Ellison,  and  Millward,  one  of  the  three  for 
whom  Quintal  had  gone  below — all  in  a  state  of 
suppressed  excitement. 

"It's  all  right,"  said  Quintal;  "Muspratt  and 
Churchill  are  coming.  They  are  with  us,  but  they 
are  below  bringing  up  some  of  the  others." 


THE   RUBICON  55 

For  one  brief  moment  the  madness  of  the  deed 
flashed  across  Christian's  brain  as  he  saw  the  figures 
of  the  seamen  coming  up  from  the  'tween  decks  ;  but 
the  phrase  "they  are  with  us"  reminded  him  that  he 
was  now  a  mutineer,  and  too  far  on  his  fatal  course  to 
draw  back.  He  set  his  teeth  and,  in  another  minute, 
followed  by  his  associates  in  the  desperate  venture, 
was  serving  out  weapons  to  his  party  from  the  arm- 
chest. 

The  noise  made  by  the  clank  of  the  arms,  slight  as 
it  was,  had  by  this  time  wakened  all  the  watch  on 
deck  ;  and  Hayward,  sitting  on  the  wheel  grating, 
was  suddenly  astounded  to  see  Christian  running 
towards  him,  cutlass  in  hand,  followed  by  a  number  of 
armed  seamen.  The  watch  came  tramping  aft,  and 
Christian,  with  a  maddening  sense  of  triumph  in  his 
heart,  felt  that  the  supreme  moment  had  arrived. 

Quick  as  lightning  he  spoke  some  hot  words  to 
McCoy  and  Quintal,  who  repeated  them  to  the 
thrcnginsr  and  excited  sailors  :  Quintal  and  Ellison 
then  rapidly  passed  weapons  to  four  or  five  of  the 
watch.  These,  stepping  apart  from  the  others,  at 
once  ranged  themselves  with  Christian  and  his  party. 

Still,  despite  the  fierce,  eager  mutterings  and  the 
clash  of  arm^s  from  those  on  deck,  there  had  been  no 
great  noise  or  confusion,  and  none  of  those  who  slept 
below  were  awakened  ;  the  mutineers,  from  ready 
force  of  habit,  obeying  unhesitatingly  the  orders  of 
the  passionate  man  who  was  once  their  officer  and 
now  their  ringleader. 

There  was  a  moment's  pause  ;  a  dozen  armed  men, 


56  THE   MUTINEER 

grim  and  determined,  stood  around  their  leader,  wait- 
ing. As  the  sun  leapt,  a  flaming  ball  of  blood-red 
fire,  from  out  the  sleeping  sea,  Christian  looked  into 
the  dark  and  working  faces  of  the  crew  and  waved  his 
cutlass  in  the  air  ;  then,  following  their  leader,  the 
desperate  men  made  a  dash  for  Bligh's  cabin. 


CHAPTER  VII 


MUTINY 


ALTHOUGH  it  was  now  daylight  the  great 
cabin  was  still  in  semi-darkness  when  Christian, 
followed  by  Churchill,  by  Mills,  the  gunner's  mate, 
and  a  seaman  named  Birkett,  burst  in  upon  the 
sleeping   commander. 

As  a  flood  of  sunlight  poured  through  the  widely- 
opened  door  Bligh,  aroused  by  the  rush  of  hurrying 
feet,  started  up  in  his  bunk  to  find  a  musket  levelled 
at  his  heart,  and  the  li\'id  face  of  Christian  looking 
savagely  into  his  own. 

"What  is  this?"  he  said  in  his  quick,  imperious 
way,  preparing  to  spring  out  of  his  berth. 

"If  you  utter  another  word  I'll  shoot  you," 
answered  Christian,  still  presenting  his  piece  ;  then 
suddenly  he  grounded  it  upon  the  deck  with  a  crash 
and  turned  to  his  followers. 

"  Drag  him  out  and  lash  his  hands  behind  his 
back,"  he  cried.  Again  the  commander  tried  to 
spring  from  his  bed,  his  cheek  white,  not  with  fear 
but  with  suppressed  rage  ;  and  again  he  threw  himself 

57 


58  THE   MUTINEER 

back  as  Christian,  whose  eyes  gleamed  with  a  deadly, 
awful  hatred,  thrust  the  muzzle  of  the  musket  almost 
into  his  face. 

In  another  moment  the  men  sprang  upon  Bligh, 
and  with  savage  fury  dragged  him  out  of  his  bunk, 
and  Mills,  the  instant  his  captain's  feet  touched  the 
deck,  seized  his  white,  delicate  hands  and  lashed  them 
behind  his  back  with  a  piece  of  native  cinnet. 

"  Drag  him  up  on  deck,"  and  Christian  stood  aside 
to  let  the  seamen  execute  his  orders. 

The  moment  the  struggling  form  of  Bligh  appeared 
on  deck,  young  Ellison,  who  had  taken  the  wheel, 
sprang  towards  them,  tore  a  bayonet  from  the  hands 
of  a  seaman  near  him,  and  launched  himself  upon  the 
captain  with  an  imprecation,  but  was  thrust  back  by 
Smith. 

"  Stand  back,  boy  !  "  said  Christian  fiercely  ;  "  I 
alone  will  deal  with  him.  You,  Smith,  and  you, 
McCoy,  keep  guard  over  him,  and  if  he  tries  to  utter 
a  word  shov/  him  no  mercy — blow  his  brains  out  on 
the  spot." 

In  grim  and  ominous  silence  McCoy  and  Smith, 
with  loaded  muskets  and  fixed  bayonets,  stepped  out 
and  stationed  themselves  on  either  side  of  the  bound 
man.  Christian,  hitherto  doubtful  of  the  fidelity  of 
his  party,  noted  with  a  savage  satisfaction  that 
McCoy's  face  was  working  with  passion,  and  that  he 
at  least  was  prepared  to  carry  out  his  leader's  orders, 
while  Smith's  open,  ruddy  countenance  was  now 
set  and  stern. 

Meanwhile    Quintal,    accompanied    by    a    seaman 


MUTINY  59 

named  Williams,  who  was  stripped  to  the  waist  and 
armed  with  a  cutlass,  had  burst  into  the  cabin  of 
Fryer,  the  master  and  senior  officer  under  Bligh,  and 
ordered  him  on  deck. 

Fryer  sprang  up  with  a  loud  cry  and  reached  for 
his  pistols,  which  were  on  a  rack  over  his  head  ;  but 
Quintal  was  too  quick  for  him  and  seized  him  by  the 
wrist  in  a  vice-like  grip. 

"  Hold  your  tongue,  or,  by  God !  you  are  a  dead  man, 
Mr.  Fryer  !  Keep  quiet  and  no  one  will  hurt  you  ; 
resist,  and  I'll  run  you  through,"  and  Williams  leant 
across  him  and  secured  the  pistols. 

The  dangerous  look  in  his  eyes  as  he  pointed  them 
at  the  master's  heart  told  Fryer  that  resistance  meant 
death,  but  folding  his  arms  across  his  chest  he  stood 
defiantly  facing  them  both. 

"  What  are  you  doing  ?  "  he  asked.  "  Have  you 
taken  the  ship  ?  " 

"  Yes,  we  have.     Mr.  Christian  is  our  captain  now." 

"Where  is  Captain  Bligh  ?  What  have  you  done 
with  him,  you  villains  ?  " 

"  Keep  a  civil  tongue  in  your  head,  Mr.  Fryer  ; 
we  are  desperate  men,  and  yet  we  don't  want  to  kill 
you.  I'll  tell  you  what  we  intend  doing  with  the 
captain,"  and  he  laughed  grimly  ;  "  we  are  going  to 
put  him  in  the  small  cutter  and  let  him  try  living  on 
three-quarters  of  a  pound  of  yam  a  day." 

"  The  small  cutter  I  Why,  her  bottom  is  almost 
out  ;  she's  worm-eaten  and  full  of  holes." 

"  The  boat  is  a  lot  too  good  for  him  even  if  she  had 
no  bottom  at  all,"  answered  Quintal.     "  Now  go  on 


6o  THE   MUTINEER 

deck,  Mr.  Fryer,  and  mind  this,  if  you  make  one 
attempt  at  resistance  you  are  a  dead  man." 

As  soon  as  they  reached  the  deck  they  saw  Chris- 
tian standing  on  the  poop,  giving  orders  to  get  out  the 
boat. 

"  In  God's  name.  Christian,  what  are  you  about  ? " 
and  Fryer,  disregarding  the  menacing  gestures  of  the 
mutineers,  placed  his  hand  on  his  shipmate's  arm. 
"  Are  you  mad,  man  ?     Consider  the  consequences  !  " 

"  Not  a  word  from  you,  Fryer  !  "  and  Christian 
dashed  aside  his  hand  fiercely.  "  I  tell  you  that  I 
have  been  in  hell  for  weeks  past.  This  dog,  this 
infernal,  malignant  scoundrel,  has  brought  all  this 
upon  himself.  Stand  back,  I  tell  you — I  am 
dangerous  !  " 

"  Christian,  let  me  implore  you.  .  .  ." 

"  Silence,  I  tell  you  !  " 

"  For  God's  sake,  Christian,  let  me  speak.  We 
have  always  been  friends,  and  you  may  trust  me. 
Resist  this  mad  impulse  before  it  is  too  late.  Let 
the  captain  go  down  to  his  cabin  again  and  leave 
me  to  tackle  the  men." 

With  a  fearful  oath  Christian  turned  upon  him  and 
pointed  his  cutlass  at  Fryer's  heart.  "  Silence  !  I  tell 
you  for  the  last  time.  I  don't  want  to  murder 
you.  Fryer,  but,  by  the  God  above  me,  FU  run  you 
through   if  you  don't  cease  !  " 

Fryer's  bronzed  cheek  paled  a  moment,  but  his  eye 
never  quailed  even  when  the  cutlass  point  touched  his 
breast.  "  Will  you  not  at  least  get  out  a  better  boat 
than  the  cutter  ?  "  he  said  quietly. 


MUTINY  6i 

"  No  !  by  heavens,  I  will  not  !  That  boat  is  good 
enough  for  such  a  ruffian,"  then  lowering  his  weapon 
he  turned  away  and  beckoned  to  Smith  and  McCoy 
to  leave  their  prisoner  and  come  to  him,  and  for  half  a 
minute  he  conversed  eagerly  with  them  ;  while  Bligh 
managed  to  get  near  enough  to  the  master  to  speak. 

"  Mr.  Fryer,"  he  said  quickly,  yet  calmly,  "  there 
must  be  some  of  the  officers  and  men  who  will  not 
fail  me  in  the  hour  of  need.  For  God's  sake.  Fryer,  try 
to  find  some  of  them  ere  this  villain  murders  us  all  !  " 

But  low  as  were  his  tones  Christian  heard  him,  and 
stepping  up  to  the  captain  and  Fryer,  when  within  a 
foot  or  two  of  Bligh,  he  seized  him  by  the  shoulder 
and  made  as  if  to  run  him  through. 

"  Advance  one  step  nearer,  and  by  the  God  above 
us  this  cutlass  goes  through  your  cowardly,  brutal 
heart !  All  the  officers  and  men  not  with  me  are 
guarded  below  ;  you  can  do  no  good  now ;  your 
authority  on  this  floating  hell  is  gone  for  ever.  Here, 
two  of  you  men  take  Mr.  Fryer  back  to  his  cabin  and 
lock  him  in." 

By  this  time  the  cutter  was  afloat  ;  but  Christian, 
realising  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  crowd  all  of 
those  who  were  well-affected  to  Bligh  into  her,  had 
also  lowered  the  launch,  a  six-oared  boat  measuring 
twenty-three  feet  from  stem  to  stern. 

Two  officers,  Hayward  and  Hallet,  and  Elphin- 
stone,  Heywood,  and  Stewart  (midshipmen),  Ledward 
the  surgeon.  Cole  the  boatswain,  Purcell  the  carpenter, 
and  some  seamen,  meanwhile  had  been  secured  either 
below  or  on  deck.     One  or  two  of  the  youngsters, 


62  THE  MUTINEER 

among  whom  was  Peter  Heywood,  a  lad  of  fifteen, 
scarcely  understanding  what  they  were  doing  in  the 
confusion  and  excitement,  had  been  compelled  to  lend 
the  mutineers  a  hand  in  getting  out  the  launch  ;  and 
Bligh's  keen  eye  happened  to  fall  on  this  boy  as  he 
was  helping  with  the  boat-falls. 

This  was  unfortunate  for  Heywood,  who  was  at 
once  put  down  by  his  commander  as  one  of  the  ring- 
leaders, and  suffered  for  it  later. 

Suddenly  Christian  sprang  upon  the  poop  from  the 
main-deck,  and  again  held  a  consultation  with  Smith 
and  McCoy.  He  turned  and  gazed  savagely  at  Bligh, 
who  met  his  look  with  unflinching  calmness.  For  a 
few  moments  the  two  men  regarded  each  other  with 
looks  of  deadliest  hatred,  and  then  Fletcher  Christian's 
voice  rang  out. 

"Pass  all  but  Captain  Bligh  over  the  side  into  the 
boat." 

Then  with  oaths,  struggles,  and  entreaties  some 
twenty  men  were  dragged  along  the  deck  and  passed 
down  into  the  boat.  Bligh,  who  stood  near  the 
gangway,  now  made  an  appeal  to  the  leader  of  the 
mutineers,  who  was  on  the  poop  watching  him. 

"If  you  will  stop  this  even  now,  Mr.  Christian, 
I  will  promise  nothing  more  shall  come  of  it,"  he 
called  out. 

The  master's  mate,  flinging  down  the  cutlass  he 
still  held,  ran  down  the  poop  and  faced  his  enemy  ; 
and  the  crew  drew  back  as  he  spoke. 

"  Captain  Bligh,  listen  to  me.  I  could  kill  you  as 
you  stand  before  me  now,  but  I   am  no  murderer. 


MUTINY  63 

Tyrant  and  coward,  I  and  those  who  have  suffered 
with  me  have  done  with  you  for  ever." 

A  crimson  flush  dyed  the  commander's  face  from 
brow  to  chin,  and  he  clenched  his  hands  together 
tightly  at  the  insulting  words. 

Then  the  boat  was  veered  astern,  and  McCoy, 
making  the  painter  fast  to  the  stern  rail,  turned  to  his 
leader  for  further  orders. 

Going  to  the  stern  of  the  ship.  Christian  eyed  the 
condition  of  the  boat  for  a  minute  in  silence,  till  the 
boatswain  made  an  attempt  to  soften  his  heart. 

"Mr.  Christian,"  he  cried,  standing  up  in  the  boat, 
"  let  me  plead  with  you  for  myself  as  well  as  Captain 
Bligh." 

"  No,  no,  Mr.  Cole,"  Christian  answered.  "  I 
have  been  in  hell  for  the  past  two  weeks  and  am  de- 
termined to  bear  it  no  longer.  You  know.  Cole,  that 
during  the  whole  voyage  I  have  been  treated  like  a 
dog." 

"  Will  you  not  let  the  master,  who  is  an  old  man, 
remain  on  board,  and  take  some  of  the  men  out  of  the 
boat  to  lighten  her  ?  "  called  Bligh,  from  where  he 
stood  at  the  gangway. 

:  I  "  No  !  "  was  the  fierce  reply  ;  "  Mr.  Fryer  must  go 
with  you — do  you  think  we  are  fools  ?  But  some  or 
the  men  may  come  out  of  the  boat." 

A  brief  discussion  among  those  in  the  boat  ended  in 
two  or  three  seamen  asking  to  be  taken  on  board. 
The  boat  was  hauled  alongside  under  the  counter  and 
they  ascended  to  the  deck  ;  and  the  boatswain,  who 
was  a  relative  of  one  of  them,  said  to  him,  "  Goodbye 


64  THE    MUTINEER 

and  God  bless  you,  my  boy  ;    but  for  my  wife  and 
children  I  too  would  stay  with  the  ship  also." 

Again  Bligh  spoke,  and  there  was  now  no  sharp, 
imperious  ring  in  his  voice. 

"  Mr.  Christian,"  he  said,  "  I'll  pawn  my  honour 
as  a  King's  officer — I'll  give  you  my  solemn  word, 
with  God  as  my  witness,  never  to  think  of  this  if  you 
will  desist  from  this  outrage  even  now.  Consider  my 
wife  and  family." 

The  mutineer  laughed  mockingly.  "  No,  Captain 
BHgh.  If  you  had  any  honour  things  would  not 
have  come  to  this  pass  ;  and  if  you  had  any  regard 
for  your  wife  and  family  you  should  have  thought  of 
them  before,  and  not  have  behaved  like  the  heartless 
villain  you  are." 

Then,  by  Christian's  orders,  Bligh's  clothes,  his 
commission,  private  journal,  and  pocket-book  were 
passed  down,  his  hands  were  liberated,  and  he  was 
ordered  into  the  boat,  which  was  hauled  amidships  to 
receive  him.  Christian  handed  to  him  over  the  side  a 
book  of  nautical  tables  and  his  own  quadrant,  saying 
as  he  did  so  :  "  That  book  is  sufficient  for  every 
purpose,  and  you  know  my  quadrant  to  be  a  good 
one." 

Again  the  boat  was  veered  astern.  Bligh,  standing 
up,  raised  his  clenched  hand  and  cursed  the  mutineers 
bitterly,  swearing  vengeance  against  those  on  the  ship 
who  would  not  help  him  to  retake  her.  Laughs  and 
jeers  from  the  group  on  the  Bounty's  poop  was  the 
only  notice  taken  of  him.  Then  for  the  last  time  the 
mutineers  heard  his  voice  and  they  ceased  their  gibes 


MUTINY  65 

at  the  dignity  of  his  tones  as  he  spoke  to  those  whom 
he  thought  yet  faithful  to  him  on  board. 

"  Never  mind,  my  lads  ;  you  can't  all  come  with 
me,  but  I  will  do  you  justice  if  ever  I  reach  England." 

The  boat's  painter  was  then  cast  off  by  Quintal, 
and  the  crew  took  to  their  oars,  Bligh  giving  his 
commands  in  a  calm  and  collected  manner.  The 
ocean  was  calm  and  only  a  faint  breeze  rippled  the 
surface  of  the  placid  sea. 

As  the  departing  commander  and  his  crew  dipped 
their  oars  into  the  water  they  saw  Christian  leaning 
on  the  rail  over  the  stern,  regarding  them  intently. 
Presently  he  stood  up  and  gave  an  order  ;  the  yards 
were  swung  round,  and  a  cheer  came  over  to  them 
from  the  ship — "  Hurrah   for  Tahiti  !  " 


And  as  the  crowded  boat  grows  smaller  and  smaller 
to  the  vision  of  the  desperate  man  who  stands  gazing 
at  her  from  the  Bounty's  stern,  so  let  those  in  her  go 
out  of  this  story  ;  they  have  no  further  part  in  it.  But 
the  memory  of  that  daring  boat  voyage  will  live  for 
ever  in  our  country's  annals.  Who  has  not  read  of 
Bligh's  indomitable  courage  and  resolution,  his  admir- 
able forethought  for  the  eighteen  suffering  beings 
who  braved  the  venture  with  him,  from  the  first  day 
when  the  over-crowded  little  craft  was  cast  off  from 
the  ship  until  it  sighted  Timor,  forty-one  days  after  ? 
His  successful  conduct  of  that  terrible  voyage  over  an 
all  but  unknown  sea,  losing  as  he  did  only  one  of  his 
men,  yet  encountering  the  risk  of  wreck  by  violent 

6 


66  THE   MUTINEER 

storms,  of  massacre  by  savage  islanders,  of  the  pangs 
of  hunger  and  the  agonies  of  thirst,  well  entitled  him 
to  the  honours  that  his  country  paid  him.  In  that  act 
of  his  life  he  played  his  part  nobly,  and  all  else  that  he 
did  ill,  when  measured  against  such  fortitude  in  the 
face  of  danger  and  death,  may  well  be  forgotten. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


HURRAH    FOR   TAHITI 


STANDING  with  folded  arms  and  gloomy  face, 
in  which  all  passion  seemed  to  be  dead,  the 
leader  of  the  mutineers  watched  the  launch  gradually 
increase  her  distance  from  the  Bounty.  The  last 
words  of  Bligh  as  the  boat  was  cast  off  still  rang  in 
his  ears  :  "  I  will  do  you  justice  if  ever  I  reach 
England." 

These  were  ominous  words,  and  they  brought 
vividly  before  him  the  horrors  of  his  situation.  "  If 
justice  is  done,"  he  muttered,  "what  will  become  of 
me  ?  My  God  !  Why  did  I  not  put  an  end  to  my 
life  before  this  madness  got  the  better  of  me  r " 

The  wild  cheer  of  "  Hurrah  for  Tahiti  ! "  from  his 
followers  roused  him  to  a  sense  of  his  present  position. 
It  was  evident  that  to  others  besides  himself  a  return  to 
Tahiti  was  one  of  the  inducements  for  the  desperate 
deed  just  accomplished.  And  he  was  quick  to  realise, 
too,  that  for  the  safety  of  them  all  he  must  assert  him- 
self and  take  command  of  the  ship.  Even  had  Bligh 
not    heard    that  defiant  cry  as   the   mutineers  swung 

67 


68  THE    MUTINEER 

round  the  yards,  Tahiti  would  be  the  first  place 
thought  of  by  those  who  would  surely  come  in  search 
of  them.  How  soon  would  that  search  begin  ?  That 
it  would  begin  sooner  or  later  he  never  doubted.  The 
possibility  of  Bligh  and  those  with  him  not  being 
picked  up  by  some  ship,  or  not  reaching  some  place  of 
safety,  never  occurred  to  him.  And  yet  every  one  but 
himself  realised  how  small  indeed  was  the  chance  that 
those  in  the  frail  little  launch  would  escape  death  in 
one  or  other  of  the  lingering  and  dreadful  forms  to 
which  he  had  so  mercilessly  consigned  them. 

The  murmuring  of  voices  roused  him  from  his 
gloomy  reflections,  and  presently  McCoy,  Quintal, 
Smith,  and  others  of  the  more  active  of  the  mutineers 
gathered  round  their  leader,  while  the  rest  of  the 
men,  forming  a  group  on  the  main  deck,  were  talking 
in  excited  tones  of  what  ought  to  be  done  for  the  best. 

He  turned  to  those  near  him  and  spoke,  with  every 
trace  of  excitement  absent  from  his  voice  and  manner. 

"  Men,  remember  that  our  future  safety  from  death 
at  the  yard-arm  depends  upon  the  discipline  of  a  well- 
ordered  ship  being  maintained.  Now  that  the  thing 
is  done  we  have  to  guard  ourselves  for  the  future. 
Therefore,  as  you  all  have  to  rely  upon  me  for  the 
navigation  of  the  ship,  and  as  I  am  the  only  officer  left, 
until  we  have  settled  upon  some  safe  island,  and  got 
rid  of  her,  you  will  have  to  obey  my  orders.  Are  you 
agreed  to  that  ?  " 

"  Aye,  aye,  Mr.  Christian  ;  you  can  depend  upon  us," 
they  answered. 

"  Very  well,  then.     I  have  decided  to  take  the  ship 


"HURRAH    FOR    TAHITI!"  69 

to  Tubuai.'  It  will  not  be  safe  for  us  to  remain  at 
Tahiti  ;  search  will  be  made  for  the  Bounty^  and 
Tahiti  will  be  the  first  place  a  ship  will  visit.  You, 
Smith,  McCoy,  and  Quintal,  who  were  among  the 
first  to  stand  by  me  in  this  undertaking,  can  arrange 
with  me  a  plan  for  our  mutual  safety. 

"  But  we  want  to  go  back  to  Tahiti,"  cried  several 
of  the  others. 

"  Yes,"  answered  Christian  quietly,  "  you  want  to 
go  back  because  of  the  women  you  have  left  there. 
Do  not  fear,  you  shall  see  Tahiti  again.  Now  listen, 
and  I  will  tell  you  what  my  plan  is.  First,  let  us  go  to 
Tubuai  and  form  a  settlement  there.  Then,  when 
that  is  finished,  I  propose  to  return  to  Tahiti  and  bring 
away  as  many  people  as  choose  to  come — that  is  if 
these  women  still  run  in  your  minds." 

There  was  a  bitter  ring  in  his  last  words,  and 
Smith,  in  a  low  voice,  asked  him  to  humour  the  men 
more,  "  for  remember,  sir,"  said  he,  "  you  have  given 
them  their  liberty  and  you  will  have  to  take  care 
how  you  cross  them." 

The  caution  was  needed  ;  most  of  the  men  by  no 
means  relished  the  prospect  of  delay  in  returning  to 
the  delights  of  Tahiti,  and  one  of  them  in  no  uncer- 
tain manner  expressed  his  sentiments,  adding — "  You 
know  Mr.  Christian,  we  have  a  couple  of  navigators 
left,  if  you  can't  hit  it  with  us." 

"  What  do  you  mean  by  that  ?  "  asked  Christian 
quickly. 

'  An  island  nearly  due  south  of  Tahiti  and  distant  from  that  island 
about  5^  degrees. 


JO  THE   MUTINEER 

"  Why,  Mr.  Stewart  and  Mr.  Heywood  are  both 
below." 

"  What  !  "  and  Fletcher  Christian  turned  fiercely  to 
Quintal.  "  Why  were  these  two — one  a  mere  child — 
not  sent  away  in  the  boat  ?  Are  you  such  villains  as 
not  to  have  told  me,  if  you  knew  it  ? " 

"It  was  just  an  idea  of  ours,"  answered  the  seaman 
who  had  first  spoken — Williams,  the  Guernsey  man  ; 
"  we  thought  it  just  as  well  to  have  more  than  one 
navigator  on  board  in  case  anything  went  wrong 
with  you." 

Christian  did  not  reply.  He  felt  that  he  had  no 
claim  to  their  obedience  other  than  they  chose  to 
admit,  and  that  this  was  but  a  reasonable  precaution  on 
their  parts. 

"  Where  are  these  two  now  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Down  below  ;  kept  prisoners  until  all  the  row 
was  over,"  answered  Williams,  "  Shall  I  pass  the  word 
for  them  to  be  brought  upon  deck  ? " 

"  Yes,"  replied  Christian  ;  "  bring  them  up." 

Stewart  and  Heywood — the  first-named  an  acting 
mate,  and  the  second  a  mere,  ruddy-faced  boy  on  his 
first  voyage  to  sea — were  accordingly  brought  up,  and 
to  the  surprise  of  every  one,  as  they  came  up  the 
ladder,  they  were  followed  by  the  swarthy-faced 
Edward  Young. 

"  What  does  this  mean,  Mr.  Christian  ? "  said  Stewart 
as  soon  as  he  reached  the  poop-deck.  "  Why  have  we 
been  kept  prisoners  ?  I  know  that  you  have  taken  the 
ship  and  turned  Captain  Bligh  adrift  with  the  other 
officers.  Why  have  we  been  detained  against  our  wills  ? " 


"HURRAH    FOR   TAHITI!"  71 

"  It  is  not  my  fault  you  arc  here,"  answered 
Christian  gloomily.  "I  thought  that  you  were  gone 
in  the  boat." 

"  However  that  may  be,"  replied  Stewart  excitedly, 
"  because  you  have  turned  pirate  that  is  no  reason  why 
we  should  do  so.  I  would  rather  die  than  remain  with 
you  and  be  branded  as  a  mutineer." 

"And  I  too,  Mr.  Christian,"  broke  in  young  Hcy- 
wood.  "  I  have  a  family  at  home,  and  no  act  of  mine 
shall  bring  disgrace  on  them." 

Christian  smiled  bitterly  at  the  lad.  "These  are 
hard  words — but  God  knows  I  cannot  blame  you  for 
them.  Yet  I  hope,  my  boy,  that  you  will  forgive  me 
for  the  misfortune  I  have  brought  upon  you  ;  and  I 
promise  that  at  the  first  port  we  reach,  if  it  be  a  spot 
where  it  is  likely  a  ship  may  touch,  you  can  separate 
from  us." 

"  That's  fair  enough,"  said  a  seamen  named 
Thompson.  "  'Twas  I  and  Williams  who  kept  you 
below  against  your  wills  ;  and  I  for  one  will  help  you 
to  leave  the  ship  by  and  by." 

"  And  what  have  you  to  say,  Mr.  Young  ? "  asked 
Christian,  turning  to  him  ;  "  how  do  you  come  to  be 
among  us  ?  " 

The  young  man  laughed  quietly  and  leant  against 
the  skylight  as  he  answered,  "  I  am  here  of  my  own 
free  will.  I  heard  what  was  going  on  on  deck  and 
quietly  got  out  of  the  way  until  you  had  decided 
matters — and  I'm  damned  glad  you  have  decided  'em 
this  way.  Bligh  is  a  good  riddance,  and  while  I  didn't 
want  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  row  I  wasn't  going 


72  THE  MUTINEER 

to  help  him  ;  and  so  long  as  you  have  the  command  I 
am  ready  to  serve  under  you." 

"  Well  done,  sir,"  cried  several  of  the  men  at  this 
speech,  w^hich  was  delivered  with  the  utmost  coolness, 
and  evoked  audible  expressions  of  disgust  and  con- 
tempt from  Stewart  and  Heywood  ;  and  then  one  of 
the  seamen  made  some  coarse  jest  about  Alrema  and 
Tahiti. 

A  look  of  contempt  passed  over  Christian's  features 
as  he  glanced  at  his  dark,  saturnine-faced  ally,  and  for 
the  instant  he  forgot  he  was  the  leader  of  mutineers, 
and  felt  as  Stewart  and  Heywood  did  towards  the 
young  man.  Then  he  remembered  the  situation,  and 
taking  Young  by  the  hand,  said  in  mingled  tones  of 
contempt  and  friendliness  :  "  Thank  you,  Young.  I 
am  glad  that  I  am  not  the  only  '  infernal  scoundrel ' 
(mocking  Bligh's  voice)  on  board  the  Bounty."" 
Then  turning  to  the  others  he  said — 

"  Well,  men,  are  you  agreed  ?  Shall  we  set  a 
course  for  Tubuai  ?  Fortunately  for  us  the  south- 
east trades  have  not  yet  set  in  for  good,  and  we  ought 
to  make  a  quick  run  there." 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir,"  cried  several  of  the  leading  spirits 
among  them.    "  We'll  abide  by  you  ;  let  it  be  Tubuai." 

"  Then  keep  her  east-south-east,"  said  Christian  to 
the  man  at  the  wheel,  and  as  the  ship's  head  came  to 
the  wind  a  point  or  two,  the  yards  were  braced  up 
and  the  little  barque  began  to  slip  through  the  water 
with  the  now  freshening  breeze. 

An  hour  later,  when  Tofoa  was  but  a  pale  blue  cone 
on    the    horizon,  an    agreement    was  arrived    at    that 


"HURRAH    FOR   TAHITI!"  73 

Young,  Churchill,  Quintal,  Smith,  and  McCoy 
should,  with  the  new  commander,  at  once  settle  a 
definite  plan  of  action  for  the  future  ;  and  the  rest  of 
the  mutineers,  coming  aft,  shook  hands  with  one 
another  and  swore  they  would  faithfully  adhere  to 
whatever  was  decided  upon. 

Then,  under  the  direction  of  Young,  the  breadfruit 
plants  were  taken  out  of  their  racks  and  passed  to  two 
seamen,  who,  standing  on  the  cabin  transoms,  with 
many  a  jest  at  this  ending  of  the  scientific  expedition, 
pitched  them  out  of  the  stern  ports  into  the  sea. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE    COUNCIL    IN    THE    CABIN 

THE  council  in  the  now  denuded  cabin  of  the 
Bounty  was  conducted  in  a  friendly  enough 
manner.  In  Smith  and  Young — both  of  whom  were 
well-liked  by  the  crew — Fletcher  Christian  had  two 
powerful  allies.  Young,  disgusted  with  life  at  sea 
under  such  a  tyrannical  commander  as  Bligh,  yet 
without  the  high  spirit  that  had  moved  Christian  to 
such  a  desperate  deed  as  mutiny,  was  willing  and 
indeed  eager  to  lead  the  life  of  luxurious  ease  that  they 
all  anticipated  in  the  future  ;  for  he  fully  recognised 
that  he,  in  joining  his  fortunes  with  those  of  Christian, 
had  for  ever  dissevered  himself  from  all  hope  of  return- 
ing to  England;  and  while  he  despised  all  those  around 
him  save  Christian,  he  was  yet  perfectly  agreeable 
to  associate  with  them  now  on  terms  of  equality. 

Smith,  in  his  strong  devotion  to  Christian,  seemed 
to  have  thrown  over  the  teachings  of  his  youth,  and 
showed  by  his  earnest  manner  that  he  was  ready  to 
stand  or  fall  by  his  new  leader. 

McCoy   and    Quintal,    rough    seamen,   rrom   long 


THE   COUNCIL  IN   THE   CABIN  75 

habits  of  obedience  and  following  the  lead  of  Young 
and  Smith,  acquiesced  in  all  that  was  proposed  ;  the 
only  doubtful  supporter  was  Churchill,  who  wanted 
the  ship  to  be  headed  for  Tahiti  at  once.  But 
obstinate  as  was  the  latter,  he  had  no  part  in  the 
plotting  that  was  already  going  on  among  some  of 
the  crew  to  compel  Christian  to  abandon  the  idea 
of  Tubuai  and  make  for  Tahiti  instead. 

The  first  matter  decided  was  that  Christian  should 
be  treated  in  every  respect  as  would  be  a  King's  officer 
commanding  the  ship,  until  such  time  as  the  mutineers 
had  found  a  place  of  refuge  on  some  island  where  they 
would  be  safe  from  discovery  or  capture.  No  one  of 
those  who  sat  in  council  in  the  cabin  for  a  moment 
thought  of  ever  returning  to  Europe  to  face  the 
ignominious  death  that  would  certainly  await  them  ; 
and  Young,  in  his  mocking  manner,  took  care  to  show 
the  seamen  who  sat  with  him  at  the  cabin  table  that 
it  was  better  for  them  all  to  die  of  old  age  on  some 
island    than  be  hanged    at  the  yard-arm  in  England. 

Following  this,  it  was  agreed  that  Young,  being 
well  liked  by  the  crew,  should  be  second  in  command 
and  take  charge  of  one  watch ;  while  Mills,  the 
gunner's  mate,  who  was  the  next  in  rank  as  well  as 
the  oldest  man  on  board,  should  take  charge  of  the 
other  half  of  the  ship's  company. 

Stewart  and  Heywood  were  to  be  regarded  as 
"  prisoners  at  large,"  and  this  decision  was  at  once 
made  known  to  them  ;  but  they  both  refused  the 
privilege  of  the  freedom  of  the  ship  if  it  involved  any 
assurance  on   their  part  of  loyalty  to  the  mutineers. 


-jS  THE    MUTINEER 

"  Send  for  them,  Mr.  Christian,"  suggested  Smith, 
"and  see  if  you  can't  get  them  to  join  us.  They'll 
listen  to  you,  I  am  sure." 

Presently  the  two  lads  were  brought  into  the  cabin, 
and  both  frankly  stated  to  Christian  their  intention 
of  endeavouring,  by  some  means  or  other,  to  reach 
England  and  doing  all  in  their  power  to  bring  him 
and  those  with  him  to  justice  when  they  got  there. 

A  dangerous  look  came  into  Edward  Young's  eyes. 
Heywood  saw  it,  but  although  his  fresh,  boyish  face 
paled  a  moment,  he  returned  Young's  frown  with  a 
look  of  defiance. 

"  As  you  please,"  said  Christian  shortly ;  "  but  I  tell 
you,  foolish  boys,  you  are  treading  on  dangerous 
ground.  Take  my  advice  and  keep  your  intentions 
to  yourselves,  else  you  will  repent  your  folly.  There 
are  men  on  board  the  ship  who  have  gone  too  far 
to " 

"  To  hesitate  at  pitching  two  damned  young  fools 
overboard,"  broke  in  Young  savagely ;  but  a  look 
from  Christian  made  him  cease.  And  then  the 
council  came  to  an  end. 

The  new  commander,  however,  took  no  steps  to 
prevent  Stewart  and  Heywood  from  going  among  the 
crew,  though  he  knew  they  were  endeavouring  to 
form  a  party  for  recapturing  the  ship.  He  was  con- 
fident that  however  some  of  the  men  might  attempt 
to  frustrate  his  plan  of  first  making  Tubuai,  none 
would  be  mad  enough  to  risk  destruction  by  listening 
to  any  talk  about  the  ship  being  recaptured. 

But   Quintal,  McCoy,  and   Smith,  fortunately  for 


THE   COUNCIL   IN   THE   CABIN  77 

the  success  of  the  enterprise,  did  not  share  their  leader's 
faith,  and  a  few  days  after  they  had  returned  to  their 
old  duties  as  able  seamen  they  found  that  the  daring 
midshipmen  had  so  far  succeeded  in  alienating  some 
of  the  crew  from  Christian  that  a  plot  was  ripe  to 
retake  the  vessel. 

One  night  when  the  ship  was  some  two  or  three 
miles  to  the  southward  of  Savage  Island — an  isolated 
but  fertile  spot  about  three  hundred  miles  from  Tofoa 
— Quintal  stood  at  the  forward  weather  rail,  gazing  at 
the  high  cliffs  of  grey  coral  rock  against  whose  jagged 
sides  the  ocean  rollers  dashed  unceasingly  and  sent 
showers  of  spray  high  up  to  the  dense  foliage  which 
grew  on  the  verge  of  their  summits.  Presently  he 
was  joined  by  Smith,  who  whispered — 

"  Heywood  and  Stewart,  with  five  others,  will  try 
to  retake  the  ship  to-morrow  evening.  Don't  talk  to 
me  now,  but  follow  me  aft  by  and  by  ;  then  we  can 
tell  Christian.  That  scoundrel  Coleman  was  the  first 
to  join  them,  and  has  promised  to  serve  them  out  arms 
to-morrow  night.  All  of  them,  except  Coleman,  are 
in  the  gunner's  watch." 

A  quarter  of  an  hour  later.  Christian,  with  a  grim 
smile,  dismissed  Smith  and  Quintal  and  watched  for 
his  chance.  About  eleven  o'clock  a  furious  rain  squall 
swept  down  from  the  south-east,  and  among  those 
who  were  sent  aloft  to  take  in  sail  by  the  gunner's 
mate,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  watch,  were  the  five 
men  who  had  agreed  to  support  Heywood  and  Stewart. 
While  these  were  busy  aloft  and  Coleman  was  asleep 
— it    being    his    watch    below — Smitii,    McCoy,  and 


78  THE    MUTINEER 

Quintal  and  another  seaman  made  a  dash  for  the  arm- 
chest  and  conveyed  it  to  the  cabin. 

Arming  all  those  men  of  whose  loyalty  he  was 
absolutely  assured,  Christian  waited  till  the  men 
came  down  from  aloft  and  the  watch  was  about  to 
be  relieved.  Then  he  called  the  plotters  aft  and 
addressed  them.  A  ship's  lantern,  held  by  a  seaman 
who  stood  beside  him,  threw  a  broad  ray  of  light  upon 
the  anxious  faces  of  the  men  gathered  on  the  soaking 
deck  ;  and  then  for  the  first  time  they  saw  that  the 
men  in  Young's  watch  were  grouped  aft  behind 
Christian  and  his  fellow  officer. 

Calling  upon  the  five  plotters  each  by  name. 
Christian   addressed   them — 

"  I  have  discovered  that  you  mean  to  retake  the  ship. 
Now  weigh  my  words  well  :  if  bloodshed  follows  it 
will  be  your  fault.  Some  of  you  who  are  anxious  to 
get  back  to  Tahiti  have  listened  to  two  foolish  boys, 
little  thinking  of  the  madness  of  such  an  attempt.  The 
arm-chest  is  now  in  my  cabin,  and  at  the  first  attempt 
on  your  part  to  take  the  command  of  the  ship  from 
me  I  will  shoot  every  man  concerned  in  it.  God  knows 
I  do  not  want  to  be  your  leader  longer  than  I  can  help, 
and  no  one  among  you  is  less  content  than  I,  but," 
and  here  he  turned  to  those  immediately  around  him, 
"  it  is  necessary  for  the  general  safety  of  us  all  that  I, 
and  I  alone,  should  have  charge  of  the  ship  ;  and,  by 
God  !  while  she  remains  afloat  and  I  alive  I  will  keep 
command." 

A  deep  growl  of  approval  came  from  those  of  his 
party    who  stood  near  him  as  he   finished  ;    then    in 


THE   COUNCIL   IN   THE   CABIN  79 

gentle  tones  Christian  addressed  Heywood  and 
Stewart,  who  had  now  come  on  deck.  Although  he 
seemed  outwardly  cool  the  lads  could  see  that  he  was 
labouring  under  strong  emotion  and  was  striving  to 
speak  to  them  calmly  and  dispassionately.  He 
besought  them  to  make  no  further  effort  to  retake 
the  ship,  but  to  support  him  in  his  authority — such  as 
it  was,  he  said  bitterly — till  the  ship  finally  reached 
Tahiti,  and  assured  them  that  this  course  was  best  for 
all  parties.  "And  you,  Heywood,"  he  said  kindly, 
placing  his  hand  on  the  lad's  shoulder,  "answer  me 
this  :  have  you,  or  you,  Stewart,  ever  known  me  to 
tell  you  a  lie  ? " 

"  No,  Mr.  Christian,  never,"  replied  the  boy 
emphatically,  looking  him  directly  in  the  face. 

"  Well  then,  my  lads,  I  beg  of  you  both  to  believe 
that  it  would  be  a  bitter  sorrow  to  me  to  hurt  either 
ll  of  you.  I  have  suffered  too  much  myself  to  wreck 
your  future  lives  by  any  needless  act  of  mine  ;  nor  will 
you  be  in  bodily  danger  unless  you  drive  us  to  stern 
measures.  And  I  swear  to  you  that  I  bear  you  no 
ill-will  for  what  has  passed  .  .  .  no,  my  lads, 
none." 

Loyal  as  they  were  to  their  duty,  both  Stewart  and 
Heywood  saw  the  force  of  his  argument  and  believed 
in  his  promise  to  set  them  free  as  soon  as  possible ;  and 
assured  him  they  would  cause  no  further  trouble. 
Then  the  watch  was  changed  and  the  matter  ended. 

But  from  that  time  the  arm-chest  was  carefully 
watched  by  men  on  whom  reliance  could  be  placed, 
and  every  night  Churchill,  who  now   kept  the  key. 


8o  THE   MUTINEER 

made  his  bed  upon  the  box,  and  slept  with  a  brace  of 
loaded  pistols  by  his  side. 

Day  after  day  the  Bounty  crept  slowly  along  to  the 
eastward,  till  early  one  morning  the  look-out  sighted 
the  two  misty  blue  peaks  of  Tubuai  rising  from  the 
sea.  As  the  ship  drew  nearer  to  the  land,  the  peaks 
united  at  the  base  and  showed  an  island  of  verdant 
hills  and  bright,  shining  beaches  of  golden  sand  encom- 
passed by  a  wide  belt  of  surf-beaten  coral  reef. 

The  wind  was  light  but  steady,  and  Christian 
succeeded  in  working  the  ship  through  the  passage  on 
the  north-west  side  without  much  trouble,  although 
she  was  beset  by  a  great  number  of  canoes  filled  with 
natives  who  made  unmistakable  signs  of  defiance  to 
the  white  men. 

As  soon  as  the  ship  was  secured.  Christian  and  his  men 
sought  to  induce  the  natives  to  come  on  board,  but 
only  one  or  two  responded  to  his  invitation ;  and  they,  by 
their  suspicious  and  haughty  demeanour,  showed  their 
distrust  and  dislike  of  the  white  strangers.  Not  a 
woman  or  child  was  visible  in  the  canoes,  and  every 
man  was  armed  with  a  club  and  spear.  The  only  dress 
they  wore  was  a  girdle  or  rather  bandage  round  their 
loins,  and  a  turban  of  tappa  cloth  round  their  heads 
of  glossy,  jet-black  and  curling  hair.  They  were 
a  far  handsomer  and  more  active  race  than  the 
Tahitians,  much  lighter  in  colour,  and  of  a  daring  and 
warlike  disposition,  and  their  open  hostility  to  the 
Bounty  party  was  every  minute  becoming  more  ap- 
parent. 

Not  anticipating  such  a  reception  as  this,  Christian 


THE    COUNCIL    IN    THE   CABIN  8i 

was  in  a  dilemma.  To  have  to  force  a  landing  would 
be  a  serious  matter,  and  after  a  brief  consultation  with 
some  of  the  men,  this  idea  was  abandoned.  The 
ship  had  been  brought  there  by  him  against  the  wishes 
of  the  majority,  and  to  have  to  fight  for  a  footing  was, 
as  Williams  said,  "  more  than  they  had  stomach  for." 

"  I  will  not  ask  you  to  fight,"  said  Christian,  "  for 
that  would  only  mean  useless  slaughter  on  both  sides. 
These  people  are,  as  you  can  see,  brave  and  determined, 
and  it  is  a  bitter  disappointment  to  me  to  find  them 
so  hostile.  But  yet  I  have  to  consider  this — the 
island,  as  you  see  for  yourselves,  is  of  amazing  fertility 
and  I  do  not  think  that  we  could  find  a  better  place  to 
live  in.  Further,  it  is  not  likely  to  be  visited  by  ships, 
and  would  be  a  safe  retreat  for  us." 

"That's  true  enough,  Mr.  Christian,"  answered 
one  of  the  seamen.  "Much  as  I  want  to  get  to  Tahiti, 
I  only  want  to  do  so  to  get  the  woman  I  left  there — 
and  there's  a  lot  more  like  me.  I,  for  one,  think  that 
Tubuai  is  a  better  place  for  us  than  Tahiti." 

"  So  do  I,"  said  Martin ;  "  and  although  I  want  to 
go  to  Tahiti  for  the  same  reason  as  most  of  us,  I'm 
willing  to  come  back  here.  To  my  mind  this  island 
is  far  better  ;  but  at  the  same  time  we  don't  want  our 
throats  cut." 

Satisfied  that  the  crew  would  be  willing  to  return, 
Christian  then  proposed  that  they  should  make  for 
Tahiti,  embark  as  many  Tahitians  as  would  come 
with  them,  return  to  Tubuai,  and  either  establish 
friendly  relations  with  the  people  or  force  a  landing 
and  build  a  fort. 

7 


82  THE   MUTINEER 

To  this  the  men  readily  assented,  for  they  could 
easily  see  that  the  island  was  not  only  very  rich  and 
fertile,  but  also  well  out  of  the  way  of  discovery,  and 
with  a  little  trouble  could  be  made  capable  of  resisting 
the  attack  of  even  an  European  force. 

So,  with  hundreds  of  natives  still  paddling  about  the 
ship  in  their  red-ochre-painted  canoes  and  uttering 
loud  cries  of  defiance,  the  anchor  was  hove  up,  the 
ship  warped  out  to  sea  again,  and  with  a  light  breeze 
filling  her  canvas,  headed  due  north  for  Tahiti. 

The  following  morning  Christian  collected  together 
in  the  main  cabin  all  the  curiosities  given  to  Bligh  and 
his  officers  by  the  people  of  Tahiti,  as  well  as  all  the 
clothes  and  other  property  left  by  those  who  had  been 
sent  away  with  him.  Then  he  mustered  the  crew 
aft  and  addressed  them,  pointing  to  the  piles  of  goods 
on  the  cabin  deck. 

"  Here,  my  fellow  pirates,  is  the  first  batch  of 
plunder — you  see  I  call  things  by  their  right  names. 
Draw  lots  and  divide  it  among  yourselves.  Every- 
thing that  is  there  will  be  of  value  to  you  for  the 
purposes  of  barter  with  the  natives." 

The  sneering  tone  in  which  he  spoke  caused  many 
an  angry  look,  but  without  another  word  he  turned 
from  them  and  went  on  deck. 

Four  days  later,  on  the  5th  of  June — thirty-eight 
days  after  the  mutiny — the  peak  of  Orohena  lay  right 
ahead  ;  at  dawn  the  following  day  the  Bounty  sailed 
into  Matavai  Bay,  and  as  the  cries  of  welcome  were 
heard,  for  awhile  all  else  was  forgotten. 


CHAPTER    X 


PIPIRI    THE    AREOI 


ON  the  same  hill  where  nearly  six  weeks  before 
she  had  watched  the  lessening  sails  of  her 
lover's  ship  sink  below  the  horizon,  Mahina  again  sat 
looking  seaward.  Day  after  day  since  the  Bounty  had 
sailed  she  had  laid  her  simple  offerings  of  fruit  upon 
the  altar  of  Oro  and  prayed  for  Christian's  return  to 
her,  and  night  after  night  when  the  rest  of  the  people 
were  singing  and  dancing  upon  the  broad  sward  in 
front  of  Tina's  house  she,  sometimes  accompanied  by 
Alrema,  sat  on  the  hill  and  the  two  girls  thought  or 
talked  of  Young  and  Christian.  But  to-day  her  friend 
was  not  with  her  ;  and  only  an  hour  before  angry 
words  had  passed  between  her  old,  fierce-tempered 
mother  and  herself  about  her  white  lover,  and  the 
girl,  after  a  passionate  burst  of  tears,  had  stolen 
silently  away  to  the  hill  to  be  alone  with  her  thoughts. 
Old  Manuhuru,  like  the  average  civilised  mother, 
had  certain  views  for  her  daughter,  and  ever  since  the 
Bounty  had  sailed  had  sought  to  induce  the  girl  to  forget 

83 


84  THE    MUTINEER 

her  white  lover  and  accept  for  her  husband  Pipiri  the 
Areoi '  priest.  And  of  all  the  men  of  Tahiti  who  had 
sought  her  love  Mahina  hated  most  the  tall,  handsome 
young  Areoi,  for  he  was  steeped  to  the  lips  in  blood- 
shed. Only  a  few  years  before  the  Bounty  came 
to  Tahiti,  Pipiri  had  with  his  own  hands  slain  his 
two  children,  according  to  the  rites  of  the  horrible 
fraternity,  which  demanded  that  a  candidate  entering 
upon  his  novitiate  should  publicly  kill  his  children  and 
put  his  wife  aside,  unless  she  too  should  become  an 
Areoi.  Mahina  had  seen  the  awful  deed,  had  heard 
the  wail  of  agony  from  the  mother  of  the  children 
when  their  ruthless  father  had  plunged  his  knife  into 
their  bosoms  ;  and  had  fled  the  scene  with  terror  in 
her  heart,  for  Pipiri  had  long  sought  her  love,  and  she 
knew  he  had  only  become  an  Areoi  that  he  might 
force  her  to  marry  him. 

The  girl,  by  every  device  she  could  contrive,  avoided 
meeting  the  young  priest,  and  to  her  great  joy,  since 
she  had  shown  her  open  preference  for  Christian,  Pipiri 

'  The  Areois  were  an  extraordinary  fraternity,  followers  of  the  gods 
Orotetefa  and  Urutetefa,  and  Mr.  Ellis  gives  a  full  description  of  them 
in  his  "  Polynesian  Researches."  They  were,  he  says,  not  only  priests, 
and  so  regarded  by  the  people  as  allied  to  the  gods  themselves,  but 
strolling  players  and  privileged  libertines.  The  association  was  composed 
of  seven  classes.  A  candidate's  admission  to  the  first  class  was 
signalised  by  the  slaughter  of  his  children,  as  a  proof  of  his  devotion  to 
the  principle  of  infanticide.  Their  power  and  influence  was  beyond 
comprehension  to  the  civilised  mind  ;  and  their  rites  and  ceremonies 
were  of  so  bloody  and  revolting  a  nature,  so  utterly  monstrous  and 
degrading  that  they  "appeared  to  have  placed  their  invention  on  the 
rack  to  discover  the  most  hideous  crimes  of  which  it  was  possible  for 
man  to  be  guilty."  Yet  for  all  this  the  natives  of  the  Society  Islands, 
especially  the  shiefs,  looked  upon  them  with  feelings  akin  to  veneration. 


PIPIRI    THE    AREOI  85 

had  not  molested  her  further,  although  she  had  fre- 
quently seen  him  talking  earnestly  with  her  mother. 
Only  once  since  Christian  had  sailed  had  she  met  him. 
She  was  returning  with  Alrema  from  her  look-out  on 
the  hill,  when  the  Areoi  sprang  upon  the  girls  as  they 
passed  along  the  narrow,  palm-shaded  path.  His  face 
was  stained  scarlet  with  the  juice  of  the  tnati  berry, 
his  long  black  hair  hung  loosely  down  over  his  copper- 
coloured  shoulders,  and  his  gleaming  savage  eyes  struck 
terror  into  her  heart ;  but  Alrema  faced  him  daunt- 
lessly. 

"  Ho,  Mahina,  daughter  of  Manuhuru,  and  Alrema 
the  saucy-tongued,"  he  cried  mockingly,  "  whence 
come  ye  ?  Are  ye  still  waiting  for  the  white  men 
who  will  never  return  ?  Dost  think  that  thy  eyes  can 
draw  back  the  g-reat  outri2;2;erless  canoe  ?  "  ' 

"  What  is  that  to  thee,  Pipiri  the  slaughterer  ?  " 
asked  Alrema,  tearing  away  her  hand  from  his  grasp ; 
"and  seek  not  to  frighten  us.  Think  not  that 
because  thou  hast  become  an  Areoi'  /  fear  thee  !  " 

"  Nay,  I  know  that  thou  fearest  no  one,"  replied 
the  priest  fiercely ;  "  but  'tis  not  thee  for  whom  I 
waited  here.  Thou  art  but  a  chattering  fool,  whose 
tongue  I  may  yet  cut  off  at  the  roots  ;  but  it  is  thee, 
Mahina,  who  hast  eaten  into  my  heart— so  now  I  ask 
thee  once  more,  Why  dost  thou  wait  for  this  white 
lover  of  thine  ?  He  will  never  return,  I  tell  thee. 
Heed  not  the  talk  of  this  fool  Alrema  and  those  like 
her — who  have  listened  to  their  white  lover's  lies. 
Fifty  and  two  days  have  gone  since  the  ship  sailed, 

'  The  Tahitians  called  the  first  ships  they  saw  outriggerless  canoes. 


86  THE   MUTINEER 

and  I  tell  thee  thou  wilt  never  see  thy  white  man 
again." 

Mahina  took  courage  from  Alrema,  whose  rounded 
bosom  panted  with  rage  at  the  mocking  words  of  the 
Areoi,  and  she  sought  to  soften  Pipiri's  savage 
nature. 

"  Why  should  I  alone  be  the  one  woman  for  whom 
thou  carest,  Pipiri  ?  There  are  many  others  better 
than  I.  So  pray  thee  let  me  be  as  I  am.  Yet  ir 
Kirisiani  comes  not  back  in  three  moons  from  now, 
then  I  will  be  thy  wife." 

The  Areoi  laughed.  "  Nay,  in  less  time  than  that. 
Only  just  now  thy  mother  swore  to  me  that  I  might 
take  thee  in  one  moon  ;  for  in  me,  too,  is  the  same 
blood  that  flows  in  thy  veins — the  blood  of  the  race  of 
Afita,  and  for  that  alone  thou  shouldst  come  to  me." 
Then  without  further  words  he  stood  aside  and  let 
the  girls  pass  on  to  their  homes. 

That  was  ten  days  ago,  and  Mahina,  as  she  sat' with 
her  face  leaning  upon  her  hands  and  gazed  seaward, 
felt  the  tears  well  up  into  her  eyes.  Her  mother  had 
indeed  promised  her  in  marriage  to  the  blood-stained 
Areoi,  whom  the  old  woman  regarded  as  a  superior 
man  even  to  the  highest  chief  in  the  land  on  account 
of  the  blood-tie  between  them,  and  because  of  the 
bitter,  undying  hatred  he  showed  to  the  white  men. 
This  she  was  always  ready  to  stimulate,  telling  him 
scornfully  that  he  knew  not  how  to  dispose  of  a  rival 
or  he  would  have  enticed  Christian  from  the  village 
and  killed  him. 

Away    to    the    westward    the    blue,    sailless   ocean 


PIPIRI   THE  AREOI  87 

sparkled  and  shimmered  in  the  rays  of  the  sun  ;  and 
nearer  in,  though  far  below  where  she  sat,  the  long 
rollers  of  pale  emerald  swept  in  serried  lines  upon  the 
shelving  reef  of  the  little  bay,  and  wavering  clouds  of 
misty  spume  drifted  slowly  before  the  wind  as  the 
rollers  curled  over  and  burst  upon  the  rocky  barrier  on 
their  passage  to  the  shore. 

For  nearly  an  hour  Mahina  sat  thus,  hearing  no 
sound  save  the  soft  crooning  note  of  some  resting 
pigeon  in  the  silent  forest  around  her,  or  the  faint 
murmur  of  voices  from  a  party  of  men  in  fishing 
canoes  who  had  landed  on  the  white  beach  far  below  ; 
then,  with  despair  in  her  heart,  she  rose  to  return  to 
the  village.  And  there,  with  his  back  against  the 
bole  of  a  great  tamanii  tree,  again  stood  Pipiri  the 
Areoi,  looking  at  her  intently. 

"  Why  dost  thou  watch  me  ?  "  she  asked,  trying 
to  pass  him,  but  he  stayed  her  gently  with  his 
hand. 

"  Because,  oh  foolish  one,  I  love  thee,  I  love  thee ; 
and  I  hate  to  see  thy  cheeks,  that  were  once  so  round 
and  soft,  grow  thin  and  drawn  with  the  folly  that  is 
consuming  thee.  See,"  and  he  pointed  with  his 
bronzed  and  brawny  arm  to  the  ocean,  "see  how 
evenly  the  sky  touches  the  water,  as  the  half-shell 
of  a  coconut  would  stand  upon  my  hand.  No  v/hite 
sail  will  break  through  the  sky-rim,  and  no  white 
man  shall  come  between  thee  and  me." 

"  If  Oro  so  wills  it.  But  the  time  that  my  mother 
has  given  me  to  wait  is  not  yet  gone  ;  why  dost  thou 
for  ever  trouble  me  ?  " 


88  THE   MUTINEER 

''  Because  Orotetefa '  hath  spoken  to  me  from  his 
altar  and  told  me  to  wait  no  longer,  for  thy  white 
lover  will  never  return.  And  to-morrow  shall  our 
marriage  feast  be." 

He  ceased  suddenly,  for  there  was  borne  to  them 
through  the  silence  of  the  surrounding  forest  a  cry 
that  sent  the  blood  dancing  through  the  veins  of  the 
girl  before  him  with  a  maddening  joy — "A  ship! 
a  ship  !  " 

She  sprang  away  from  him  to  the  verge  of  the  hill 
and  there — not  a  far  distant  speck  on  the  horizon,  but 
rounding  the  northern  point — was  a  ship,  standing  in 
before  the  breeze  and  furling  her  sails  as  she  approached 
the  anchorage. 

A  quick  mist  filled  the  girl's  dark  eyes,  and  she 
staggered  for  a  moment  upon  her  feet.  Then  she 
turned  and  looked  into  the  rage-distorted  face  of  the 
Areoi  priest. 

"  Thou  hast  lied  to  me,  Pipiri  the  Areoi." 

In  another  moment,  evading  the  savage  grasp  with 
which  he  sought  to  stay  her,  she  was  flying  down  the 
hillside  to  the  beach. 

'  One  of  the  guardian  deities  of  the  Areois.  He  was  believed  some- 
times to  speak  to  any  especially  favoured  worshipper. 


CHAPTER  XI 


TOGETHER     AGAIN 


BEFORE  the  panting  girl  reached  the  beach  the 
Bounty  was  at  anchor  and  her  deck  crowded 
with  natives,  who  greeted  Christian  and  the  ship's 
company  with  the  most  extravagant  manifestations  of 
joy.  For  him  personally  they  had  always  shown  the 
liveliest  regard  ;  not  only  was  he  one  of  Tuti's  people, 
but  his  uniform  kindness  to  them  had  won  their  hearts, 
and,  indeed,  Bligh  himself  was  the  only  one  of  the 
Bounty  s  company  whom  they  feared  more  than  they 
loved. 

Tina  himself  was  among  the  first  to  board  the  ship, 
and  his  frank,  ingenuous  countenance  betrayed  his 
astonishment  at  the  return  of  his  friends,  while  his 
wondering,  inquiring  glance  as  his  eye  roved  over  the 
group  of  officers  on  the  poop-deck  showed  that  he  was 
quick  to  discover  the  absence  of  Bligh. 

"  la  oro  na  oe^  Kirhiani^^ '  he  said  with  a  smile, 
advancing  to  Christian,  "and  where  is  the  chief 
Pirai  ?     And  why  hath  the  ship  come  back  so  soon  ? 

'  "  May  you  live,  Christian,"  the  Tahitian  form  of  greeting. 
89 


90  THE    MUTINEER 

Hast  thou  already  been  to  Peretane  and  returned  in 
three  moons  ?  " 

Fletcher  Christian  was  quick  with  his  answer. 
"  Nay,  Tina,  friend  of  my  heart,  we  have  been 
fortunate.  See,  when  we  neared  the  island  that  is 
called  Tonga '  we  there  met  the  great  chief,  he 
whom  you  call  Tuti.^  He  took  on  board  his  ship 
our  chief  Pirai  and  many  others  of  our  people  and  all 
the  presents  of  breadfruit  trees  for  our  king.  And 
then  said  he  to  me,  *  Go  thou  back,  Kirisiani,  to  the 
country  of  Tina,  my  friend,  and  say  these  words  to 
him,  "  I,  Tuti,  his  friend,  need  yams  and  pigs  and 
other  food  ;  my  people  are  many  and  I  cannot  feed 
them  all,  for  the  sea  is  wide  between  here  and  Britain.' 
And  for  these  things  have  I  returned  to  Tahiti,  while 
Tuti  awaits  me  at  Tonga.  And  for  a  gift  he  hath 
sent  thee  by  me  much  iron,  for  he  knoweth  that  iron 
is  needed  by  thy  people." 

Tina  smiled  pleasantly  and  expressed  his  earnest 
desire  to  serve  both  Cook  and  Bligh  ;  and  he  and  many 
minor  chiefs  who  had  flocked  on  board  greeted  every 
one  of  the  mutineers  as  old  and  dear  friends. 

For  some  minutes  great  excitement  and  confusion 
prevailed,  and  in  the  midst  of  the  pleasant  clamour 
a  small    canoe,   paddled  by   two  young  women,   ran 

'  Tofoa  would  be  unknown  to  Tina,  who  would,  however,  have  been 
acquainted  with  the  name  of  Tonga,  in  which  group  it  is  situated, 

^  Bligh,  and  his  people  on  the  Bounty,  considered  it  advisable  to  care- 
fully conceal  the  fact  of  Cook's  death  from  the  Tahitians,  This  decep- 
tion was  practised  on  account  of  the  intense  veneration  the  natives  had 
for  him,  and  Bligh  feared  that  the  disclosure  of  his  death  would  have  a 
bad  effect  on  his  mission. 


TOGETHER   AGAIN  91 

alongside  the  ship,  and  Mahina  sprang  up  the  ladder 
on  deck,  and  with  a  soft,  joyous  cry  threw  herself  into 
Christian's  arms. 

"  Thou  hast  returned,  my  own,"  she  murmured. 
"  Oro  hath  heard  my  prayers,  and  thy  heart  is  still 
mine." 

An  angry  flush  for  a  moment  suffused  Christian's 
cheek  at  this  demonstration  before  the  whole  ship's 
company,  and  drawing  her  aside  he  rebuked  her. 

"  Mahina,"  he  said  severely,  "  in  my  country  it  is 
only  the  base  and  lower  sort  who  show  their  hearts  in 
this  way  before  all  men." 

The  girl  trembled,  but  quickly  recovered  herself, 
and  her  dark  eyes  flashed.  Drawing  back  from  her 
lover  she  spoke  in  such  tones  of  wounded  pride  that 
Christian  felt  his  cheeks  burn  v/ith  shame. 

"  Truly,  I  had  forgotten  that  the  blood  of  the  white 
man  is  cold,"  then  placing  her  hands  on  her  eyes,  she 
walked  away,  and  the  hot  tears  trickled  through  her 
fingers. 

Few  as  were  her  words,  they  touched  him.  He 
remembered  that  since  he  had  parted  from  this  girl 
two  months  before  the  whole  of  his  life  had  been 
changed.  Her  passionate  devotion  to  him  during  the 
five  months  the  Bounty  first  remained  at  Tahiti  was 
the  one  bright  spot  which  then  had  made  life  endurable, 
and  now,  her  faithful  heart  bursting  with  love  for  him, 
he  had  met  her  tender  embraces  with  what  to  her  was 
cold  brutality.  "  She  alone  is  the  only  soul  on  earth 
who  will  love  me  to  the  end,"  he  thought  bitterly  ; 
"she  alone  will  not  shrink    from  contact   with  me, 


92  THE   MUTINEER 

in  the  time  to  come."  He  followed  and  took  her 
hand. 

"Mahina,"  he  whispered,  "forgive  me,  for  thou 
knowest  that  for  thy  sake  I  have  thrown  away  for 
ever  my  country  and  kindred.  Thou  art  the  one 
woman  dear  to  me  in  the  world,  and  thy  life  is  my 
life." 

She  flung  her  arms  round  his  neck  and,  caring  not 
for  those  who  stood  about  oh  the  Bounty's  deck,  kissed 
him  again  and  again  in  all  the  abandonment  of  her 
fondness. 

Whispering  that  she  might  wait  for  him  in  the 
cabin,  he  gently  disengaged  her  arms,  and  turned  away 
to  look  for  Tina. 

That  night  every  one  of  the  mutineers,  except  their 
chief  and  Smith,  went  ashore  to  their  native  friends  ; 
and  as  the  sound  of  their  singing  and  dancing  floated 
across  the  bay  to  the  ship,  Mahina,  in  the  cabin  of  the 
Bounty^  lifted  her  eyes  to  Christian's  and  contentedly 
laid  her  head  upon  his  breast. 


The  Bounty  was  once  more  ready  for  sea.  Great 
numbers  of  hogs,  goats,  and  fowls  were  cheerfully 
given  by  the  islanders  to  Christian  and  his  com- 
panions, and,  for  a  small  parcel  of  some  red  feathers — 
which  were  highly  prized  by  the  natives  —  Tina 
presented  them  with  a  cow  and  bull  which  had  been 
left  on  the  island  by  Captain  Cook.  Water,  wood, 
mahi  (baked  fermented  breadfruit),  yams,  coconuts 
and    breadfruit  were  also  put  on  board  in  profusion. 


I 


TOGETHER   AGAIN  93 

After  making  a  careful  survey  of  the  ship  and  listening 
to  various  suggestions  made  by  the  crew  for  her 
repair,  the  leader  of  the  mutineers  went  ashore  for  the 
last  time  before  his  marriage,  which  was  to  take  place 
on  the  following  day. 

Accompanied  by  Smith,  the  young  man,  after 
landing  and  pushing  through  the  crowd  of  natives 
who  had  gathered  on  the  beach  and  sought  to 
detain  him  in  friendly  converse,  made  his  way  to 
a  native  house  of  considerable  size  and  handsome 
construction. 

Here  Heywood  and  Stewart  were  living.  The 
latter  had  renewed  his  former  tender  relations  with 
Nuia,  who,  the  moment  Christian  entered,  met  him 
with  a   bright   smile  of  welcome. 

Then  she  went  for  Stewart  and  Heywood,  who 
were  lying  on  the  village  lawn  under  the  shade 
of  a  breadfruit  tree.  Christian  had  permitted  the 
two  young  officers  to  leave  the  ship  on  the  day 
after  her  arrival,  principally  because  of  the  passionate 
entreaties  of  Nuia,  who  imagined  he  was  her  lover's 
enemy  and  would  kill  him  for  some  neglect  of  duty, 
and  secondly  because  he  had  induced  both  not  to 
reveal  the  true  cause  of  his  return  to  the  islanders, 
so  long  as  the  Bounty  remained  at  Tahiti.  As  for  the 
natives  themselves,  although  they  had  begun  to  suspect 
that  all  things  were  not  quite  as  the  mutineers  repre- 
sented them,  yet  they  believed  that  Cook  had  good 
reasons  for  sending  the  ship  back  to  Tahiti  ;  and  that 
he  had  done  so  they  never  for  a  moment  doubted.  So 
Tina    and    his    people    were    pleased    enough    when 


94  THE   MUTINEER 

Christian  proposed  that  some  of  them  should  sail  away 
in  the  Bounty  and  visit  Peretane  and  King  George. 
To  further  the  deception,  Christian  stated  that  he  had 
no  objection  to  some  of  his  own  men,  who  had  allied 
themselves  to  native  women,  remaining  behind  at 
Tahiti.  This  proposal  was  made  to  account  for  the 
fact  that  besides  Heywood  and  Stewart  several  of  the 
crew  had  determined  to  sever  themselves  from  the 
ship's  company ;  not  for  the  same  reasons  which 
animated  the  two  midshipmen,  but  because  the  women 
with  whom  they  were  living  did  not  care  to  venture 
to  sea  in  the  "  great  outriggerless  canoe." 

In  a  few  minutes  Heywood  and  Stewart  entered  the 
house. 

Both  of  them  looked  cheerful  and  well,  and 
Christian  could  not  help  feeling  pleased  at  the  friendly 
manner  in  which  they  returned  his  greeting. 

"  I  have  come  to  see  you,  perhaps  for  the  last 
time,"  he  said,  "  and  to  thank  you  for  the  manner  in 
which  you  have  kept  your  promise  to  a  broken  and 
disgraced  man.  Heaven  knows,  my  lads,  that  I  would 
gladly  assist  you  to  return  to  England  if  it  were  in  my 
power.  But  have  no  fear  ;  that  a  ship  will  be  sent 
out  here  is  an  absolute  certainty." 

Heywood  ventured  to  question  him  as  to  when  he 
intended  sailing. 

"  Do  not  ask  me,"  he  replied  hurriedly,  while  the 
hot  blood  mounted  to  his  forehead  ;  "  it  may  be  soon, 
it  may  not  be  for  a  week,  but  I  cannot  come  and  see 
you  again  .  .  .  and  I  want  you  to  shake  hands  with 
me  before  I  go." 


TOGETHER   AGAIN  95 

After  a  momentary  hesitation  Stewart  held  out  his 
hand,  but  young  Heywood,  whose  eyes  were  filled 
with  tears,  with  boyish  impulsiveness  sprang  forward 
before  his  companion. 

"  Goodbye,  sir  ;  I  will  never  forget  how  good  you 
have  always  been  to  me  on  the  Bounty.'''' 

Christian  took  their  hands  in  his  and  wrung  them. 
"  Goodbye,  my  lads.  God  bleis  you  both,  and  forgive 
me  all  the  harm  I  may  have  done  you." 

Then  he  turned  away,  and  with  Smith  closely 
following  him,  was  soon  lost  to  sight. 

Soon  after  dawn  the  village  was  astir  with  the  pre- 
parations for  Christian's  marriage. 

Troops  of  natives  carrying  presents  of  food  and 
other  articles  kept  constantly  arriving  from  all  parts  of 
the  coast,  and  the  first  to  welcome  them  and  instruct 
them  wliere  to  place  their  gifts  was  old  Manuhuru, 
Mahina's  mother.  She  was  quick  to  recognise,  as 
soon  as  Christian  returned  the  possessor  of  so  many 
riches,  the  advisability  of  withdrawing  all  further 
opposition  to  her  daughter's  marriage  with  the  young 
Englishman  ;  for  with  all  her  hatred  of  the  white 
men  she  was  very  avaricious. 

Only  that  morning  she  had  bidden  Pipiri  give  up 
all  hope  of  her  child  now  that  Christian  had  returned  ; 
and  the  young  warrior-priest,  with  savage  hatred  in 
his  heart,  had  cursed  her  and  sworn  yet  to  possess  her 
daughter  if  fifty  white  men  stood  in  his  way. 

As  Mahina  was  connected  through  her  parents  with 
the  reigning  family  of  Tahiti,  the  marriage  ceremony 
was  to  be  performed  in  the  marae  or  temple  of  Oro 


96  THE   MUTINEER 

instead  of  in  the  family  marae^  and  thither  went  all 
the  people  to  witness  the  event. 

Mahina,  sitting  on  a  mat,  was  surrounded  by  a 
number  of  young  girls  who  had  arrayed  her  in  her 
wedding  garments  ;  at  a  sign  from  the  officiating 
priest  of  Oro  she  rose  and  advanced  to  meet  her  white 
lover,  who,  attended  by  Alexander  Smith  and  a  number 
of  young  natives  of  strikingly  handsome  appearance, 
was  now  walking  across  the  grassy  sward  towards  her, 
his  plain  uniform  contrasting  strangely  with  the  wild, 
yet  picturesque,  garb  of  his  island  friends,  most  of 
whom  had  their  hair  profusely  decorated  with  wreaths 
of  white  and  scarlet  blossoms.  Round  each  man's 
waist  was  a  girdle  composed  of  scarlet  leaves  of  the  t'l 
plant,  and  bright  yellow  strips  of  the  plantain  leaf. 
Upon  each  wrist  and  ankle  were  circlets  of  pieces 
of  pearl  shell  fitted  into  an  embroidered  net  work  of 
red  and  black  cinnet ;  the  islanders'  light  brown  skins 
shone  with  the  scented  oil  with  which  they  had 
anointed  themselves,  and  the  beautiful  curved  lines  or 
deep  blue  tattooing  with  which  their  bodies  were  so 
freely  covered  stood  out  with  such  startling  distinct- 
ness that  even  Smith,  the  most  tattooed  man  of  all 
the  bounty  s  crew,  could  not  help  uttering  a  cry  or 
admiration. 

When  about  fifty  reet  distant  from  each  other,  the 
two  parties  stopped,  and  a  pretty  little  maiden,  carry- 
ing in  her  hand  a  ripe  plantain  and  a  young  drinking 
coconut,  advanced  out  from  among  the  women  sur- 
rounding Mahina,  and  addressed  the  young  native 
chief  who  led  Christian's  party — 


TOGETHER  AGAIN 


97 


"Who  are  ye  that  come  here  so  gaily  clad,  and 
why  do  ye  come  ?  " 

"I,  Kirisiani,  come  to  the  altar  of  Oro  so  that  I 
may  take  for  my  wife  Mahina,  daughter  of  Manuhuru," 
replied  the  mutineer,  taking  the  plantain  and  coconut 
from  her  and  giving  her  a  piece  of  stained  native  cloth 
in  return. 

The  child  returned  to  her  party,  who  began  to 
chant  some  verses  in  praise  of  the  beauty  of  Mahina  ; 
then  the  ranks  opened  out,  and  Christian,  prompted 
by  a  chief,  stepped  to  her  side. 

Together  they  slowly  walked  to  the  marae^  where 
they  seated  themselves  upon  mats.  Christian  at  one 
end  of  the  temple,  Mahina  at  the  other,  while  the 
people  disposed  themselves  round  the  sacred  edifice  in 
silence. 

The  leafy  screen  in  front  of  one  of  the  sacred 
dormitories  opened  ;  Harere,  the  priest,  clothed  in 
the  vestments  of  his  sacred  office,  stepped  forward, 
and,  spreading  a  small  square  of  white  tappa  cloth 
in  the  centre  of  the  temple,  bade  Mahina  and  the 
white  man  seat  themselves  upon  it.  Then,  standing 
directly  in  front  of  Christian,  he  said,  in  a  loud  voice, 
"  Kirisiani.^  taata  Peretane^  eita  anei  oe  e  faa  ''rue  t  ta 
oe  vahinef''  ("Christian,  the  Englishman,  wilt  thou 
not  cast  away  this  woman  ?")  to  which  the  mutineer 
replied  '■^ Eita"  ("No  ").  The  same  question  was  put  to 
Mahina,  and  the  girl,  with  a  happy  smile  lighting  up 
her  lovely  face,  and  her  little  hand  pressing  her  lover's, 
quickly  gave  the  same  answer. 

"  Fortunate    then    may  your    lives    be    if  thus    ye 
8 


98  THE    MUTINEER 

remain  true  one  to  another,"  said  Harere.  Then 
stepping  back  from  them  and  facing  the  sacred  altar 
of  Oro,  the  priest  prayed  to  the  god  that  the  English- 
man and  his  wife  might  live  together  in  affection, 
that  male  children  might  be  given  to  them  in  the 
earlier  years  of  their  married  life,  that  they  might  not 
"hunger  nor  thirst,  nor  see  blood  shed  w^ithin  their 
house." 

Then  old  Manuhuru  stepped  into  the  sacred  en- 
closure, bearing  in  her  hands  a  heavy  piece  of  ahu 
vavauy  or  tappa  cloth,  w^hich  she  spread  out  upon 
the  stone  floor  of  the  temple  ;  and  Harere  the  priest 
bade  the  lovers  sit  upon  it  and  hold  each  other  by  the 
hand  while  he  again  addressed  them. 

"  Hearken,  Englishman.  It  is  the  custom  of  this 
land  for  the  man  and  the  woman  who  marry  before 
Oro  and  sit  as  thou  and  this  woman  sit  now,  to  place 
before  them  the  skulls  of  their  ancestors,  whose 
spirits,  entering  into  the  dead  bones,  will  hear  the 
vows  that  ye  have  made  one  to  the  other.  But  thou, 
Kirisiani,  art  from  a  far-off  country,  and  it  is  not  the 
custom  of  thy  people  to  carry  about  with  them  on  the 
sea  the  skulls  of  their  forefathers.  And  the  mother  of 
thy  wife,  though  now  as  we  are,  Tahitian,  is,  like 
thee,  of  strange  blood — her  mother's  people  came 
from  a  distant  land  which  sprang  from  out  the  sea, 
and  neither  hath  she  a  skull  to  place  before  thee. 
And  for  this  does  Manuhuru  now  make  a  sacrifice 
before  Oro." 

He  handed  to  Mahina's  mother  a  large  shark's  tooth 
with  the  base  embedded  in  a  piece  of  polished  wood. 


TOGETHER   AGAIN  99 

Advancing  to  Christian,  the  old  woman  seized  his 
right  arm  and  made  a  small  cut  with  the  sharp  point 
of  the  tooth  upon  the  palm  of  his  hand,  then  did  the 
same  upon  the  hand  of  her  daughter.  As  the  blood 
flowed  and  dripped  down  she  caught  it  upon  a  piece 
of  cloth  with  her  left  hand,  and  with  her  right  she 
thrust  the  keen-edged  tooth  into  her  own  breast,  brow, 
and  left  shoulder,  over  and  over  again. 

"  See,  white  man,"  she  croaked.  "  Once  I  hated 
thee  and  all  white  men,  but  now  thy  blood  and  mine 
and  my  daughter's  have  mixed.  And  if  thy  blood  is 
as  good  as  mine — for  I  am  of  Afita— then  does  this 
mingling  of  it  with  mine  render  thee  equal  to  Mahina ; 
and,  moreover,  the  mixing  of  blood  shall  bind  thee 
closer  to  thy  wife." 

Scarcely  able  to  conceal  his  disgust  at  the  frightful 
spectacle  the  old  woman  presented,  with  her  face  and 
shoulders  streaming  with  blood.  Christian  was  glad  to 
submit  to  the  concluding  part  of  the  ceremony,  which 
was  the  brief  suspension  over  the  heads  of  the  married 
pair  of  a  large  piece  of  cloth  called  te  tapoi. 

Leaving  the  temple  Christian  and  his  bride  were 
escorted  to  a  new  house  specially  prepared  for  them  in 
which  to  receive  their  presents,  and  the  young  man 
could  not  but  be  touched  at  the  people's  expression  of 
their  kindly  feeling  towards  him,  and  the  overwhelm- 
ing display  of  their  generosity. 

The  rest  of  the  day  was  spent  in  the  wildest  enjoy- 
ment and  sumptuous  feasting  ;  then  when  darkness 
descended  upon  the  scene  the  women  and  girls  sang 
and  danced,  and  a  band  of  Areois  delighted  the  people 


loo  THE    MUTINEER 

by  their  wild  pantomimic  exhibitions  far  into  the 
night. 

But  in  the  midst  of  the  merry  clamour  Mahina, 
without  bidding  her  aged  mother  farewell,  stole  quietly 
away  to  the  ship  to  await  her  husband,  who  had  gone 
to  take  leave  of  Tina.  As  she  paddled  off  alone  in  a 
tiny  canoe,  the  tall,  stalwart  figure  of  Pipiri  the  Areoi 
appeared  on  the  beach.  For  a  few  seconds  he  watched 
her  as  she  disappeared  in  the  darkness.  Then  he 
plunged  into  the  water  and  swam  noiselessly  in  the 
same  direction. 

Long  before  daylight  next  morning  Mahina  awoke 
and  found  that  her  husband  was  gone  from  her  side. 
A  wild  look  of  fear  for  a  moment  blanched  her  olive 
cheek  ;  then  a  smile  parted  her  lips  as  she  heard  his 
voice  on  deck. 

"  Man  the  capstan,  lads." 

She  ran  on  deck  and  found  the  ship  crowded  with 
natives,  among  whom  were  Tina  and  his  noble  wife, 
who  wept  when  Christian  bade  them  farewell.  To 
King  George  the  chief  sent  many  messages,  for  he 
firmly  believed  that  the  Bounty  was  on  her  way  to 
England. 

Amid  the  sounds  of  weeping  and  the  sighing  of 
tender  farewells  the  anchor  came  in  sight,  the 
ship's  head  swung  round,  and  the  Bounty  was  again 
under  way. 

Once  outside  the  white  line  of  foaming  surge  which 
thundered  on  the  reef,  Edward  Young,  who  had  been 
securing  the  anchor,  came  quietly  aft  and  stood  beside 
his  wife  Alrema,  who,  with  Mahina  and  other  women, 


TOGETHER   AGAIN  loi 

was    on    the    poop.     Presently,    as    Ch/istian    passed, 
Young  caught  him  by  the  arm. 

"I  didn't  like  to  disturb  you  lact  night,  an c!  stf 
acted  on  my  own  responsibility.  Stewart  and 
Heywood  came  on  board  and  announced  their 
determination  to  sail  with  us  if  you  would  permit 
them." 

Fletcher  Christian's  face  darkened.  "  Stewart  and 
Heywood  !     What  does  this  mean  ?  " 

"  Treachery,"  answered  Young,  "  and  I  determined 
to  meet  treachery  with  deceit.  I  told  them  that  I 
was  certain  you  would  never  consent  to  their  coming 
on  board  again,  but  that  if  they  liked  to  stow  them- 
selves away  till  we  got  out  to  sea  I  would  not  say 
anything  about  it,  but  let  them  discuss  the  matter 
with  you  afterwards." 

"  Are  you  mad,  Young,  to  do  this  ? " 

The  sallow-faced  midshipman  laughed.  "  Not  a 
bit  of  it.  They  might  do  us  more  harm  by  remaining 
at  Tahiti  than  they  would  by  coming  with  us. 
Stewart  has  Nuia  with  him,  and  although  she  is  as 
true  as  steel  to  the  chicken-hearted  dog,  she  has  let  it 
out  to  Alrema  that  he  persuaded  Heywood  to  come 
on  board  with  him  last  night." 

"  What  do  you  think  is  his  intention  ? "  asked 
Christian  moodily. 

"  To  recapture  the  ship,  and  try  to  sail  her  to 
England  and  get  a  commission — while  we  dangle 
from  a  yard-arm  at  Portsmouth." 

"  Then  why  let  them  come  on  board  ?  " 

"  Vo  prevent  their  giving  us  trouble  in  the  future. 


102  THE   MUTINEER 

'f  hfeie  are  loi-S  of  islands  where  no  ships  are  ever  likely 
to  touch,  and  we  can  put  them  ashore  before  we 
reach  TuDuai- — and  be  damned  to  them." 

"  To  let  them  perhaps  die,  with  their  fate  unknown  ! 
But  there,  Young,  forgive  me.  You  have  done  wisely. 
Let  them  come  on  deck,  and  I  will  watch  them 
closely  till  a  fitting  time  arrives  for  us  to  rid  ourselves 
of  them." 

On  board  the  Bounty  were  several  native  women, 
the  wives  of  Smith,  Quintal,  and  McCoy,  and  two 
Tahitian  men,  brothers  of  Smith's  and  Quintal's 
wives,  who  had  determined  to  accompany  the  white 
men.  These  Christian  was  glad  to  see,  as  he  thought 
they  would  prove  useful  as  interpreters. 

But  an  hour  later,  after  his  talk  with  Young,  and 
when  the  land  was  twenty  miles  astern,  it  was  found 
that  many  more  natives  had  hidden  themselves  on 
board,  and  that  altogether  the  Bounty's  complement 
had  been  increased  by  twelve  women,  eight  boys,  and 
nine  men. 


CHAPTER  XII 


THE     END     OF     PIPIRI 


SEVEN  days  later  the  ship  was  once  more  at 
Tubuai,  but  the  passage  had  been  so  rough  that 
most  of  the  live  stock  were  washed  overboard,  and 
the  natives  had  to  help  work  the  ship.  To  add 
to  the  troubles  of  the  voyage,  Mahina  and  the  other 
women  suffered  so  much  from  sickness  that  they  were 
in  the  last  stage  of  exhaustion  when  Tubuai  was 
sighted.  And  Christian,  who,  from  the  hour  he  had 
plunged  into  the  mutiny  had  repented  it,  grew  morose 
and  miserable  with  the  bitterness  of  unavailing  regret 
and  the  anxieties  of  his  position  as  leader. 

Well  it  was  for  him  that  at  this  time  and  in  the 
black  days  to  come,  the  example  of  Smith  and  Young 
kept  alive  in  the  rest  of  the  crew  a  respect  for  him  ; 
for  these  two  men,  by  their  undeviating  loyalty  to 
their  leader  and  their  influence  for  good  with  their 
fellow-mutineers,  preserved  the  spirit  of  obedience  to 
their  chief,  and  thus  averted  the  worst  danger  that 
could  threaten  such  a  company. 

As   the   ship   entered  the  passage,  the  Tubuaians, 
103 


104  THE    MUTINEER 

instead  of  attacking  the  ship  as  it  was  feared  they 
would,  came  off  in  their  canoes  in  great  numbers, 
and  seeing  the  Tahitians  on  board,  quickly  made 
friends  with  them.  They  clambered  up  the  sides  of 
the  Bounty,  seized  the  ropes,  and  helped  the  sailors  to 
warp  the  vessel  through  the  reef  to  a  safe  anchorage. 
In  a  very  short  time  barter  was  begun  ;  Christian, 
accompanied  by  Mahina,  went  ashore,  and  with  her 
aid  as  interpreter  he  soon  negotiated  with  the  chief  of 
the  island  for  a  strip  of  land  on  which  to  erect  a  fort. 

But  the  Tubuaians  were  less  friendly  when  they 
found  that  the  white  men  intended  to  live  among 
them,  and  they  sought  to  withdraw  from  the  treaty 
they  had  just  made. 

"  We  like  not  the  white  strangers,"  said  one  of 
them  to  Mahina.  "  How  comes  it  that  if,  as  thou 
sayest,  the  white  chief  is  thy  husband  he  remained  not 
with  thee  in  the  Big  Land  ?  ^  Why  comes  he  here 
to  seek  a  home  ?  " 

"  Foolish  man,"  answered  the  wily  Mahina  haugh- 
tily. "  Little  dost  thou  know  of  the  customs  of  these 
clever  white  men.  They  are  as  wise  as  the  gods,  and 
like  not  the  ways  of  the  people  of  Tahiti.  And  the 
men  of  Peretane  are  more  like  those  of  Tubuai — they 
eat  and  drink  and  live  alike — and  for  this  reason  do 
they  desire  to  remain  on  Tubuai." 

This  compliment,  and  the  gift  of  a  quantity  of  iron, 
induced  the  Tubuaians  to  offer  no  further  opposi- 
tion. The  ground  was  to  the  eastward  of  the 
entrance    at  a    place  called    Avamoa  ;    and    here,    in 

•   Tahiti. 


THE   END   OF   PIPIRI  105 

spite  of  shoal  water  and  the  numberless  coral  boulders 
which  studded  the  lagoon,  it  was  determined  to 
bring  the  Bounty. 

The  ship  was  lightened  as  much  as  possible — no 
easy  task,  for  there  was  but  one  boat — and  after  much 
labour  she  was  brought  close  up  to  the  site  of  the  pro- 
posed fort  and  moored  in  six  fathoms  of  water.  For 
two  days  the  work  of  lightening  the  ship  proceeded 
steadily,  and  Christian  took  part  with  the  others  in  the 
task.  The  Tubuaians  lent  some  assistance  ;  but  their 
habits  of  pilfering  at  last  brought  such  an  explosion  of 
wrath  from  the  leader  of  the  mutineers  that  they  de- 
sisted, and  matters  again  went  on  smoothly  for  a  time. 

It  was  the  custom  of  Mahina,  Alrema,  Nuia,  and 
the  other  Tahitian  women  to  sit  about  the  poop  and 
watch  the  labours  of  their  white  husbands,  and  listen 
to  the  loud,  excited  cries  of  the  half-naked,  fierce- 
looking  Tubuaians  as  they  swarmed  about  the  main 
deck,  examining  with  intense  curiosity  the  strange 
fittings  of  the  ship,  and  arguing  vociferously  among 
themselves  as  to  their  use. 

Late  one  afternoon,  just  after  the  last  boat  load  had 
left  for  the  site  of  the  fort,  and  the  wild  islanders 
had  gone  ashore  in  their  canoes,  Mahina  was 
standing  alone  at  the  stern.  Gazing  down  into  the 
transparent  depths  of  the  lagoon  and  watching  the 
many-hued  fish  that  swam  in  and  out  among  the 
branches  of  the  coral  forest  which  covered  the 
bottom,  she  was  startled  by  a  touch  upon  the  shoulder, 
and  turning,  she  met  the  face  of  Pipiri  the  Areoi, 
looking  at  her  with  intense  hatred  gleaming  from  his 


io6  THE   MUTINEER 

eyes.  So  changed  was  he  by  his  sickness  on  the 
voyage  that  she  could  not  recognise  him,  and,  in 
addition  to  this  (perhaps  for  the  purpose  of  disguise), 
he  had  shaved  his  head  completely,  and  his  once  care- 
fully trimmed  beard  had  disappeared. 

She  uttered  a  cry  of  alarm,  and  in  an  instant  Chris- 
tian was  beside  her. 

"  What  is  the  matter  ? "  he  asked. 

With  terror  in  her  face  she  pointed  to  Pipiri  and 
murmured  :  "  'Tis  Pipiri  the  Areoi ;  he  hath  frightened 
me. 

Christian  looked  at  the  Tahitian  and  gradually 
recognised  his  features,  and  remembered  that  the 
people  at  Pare  and  Matavai  had  told  him  that  if  he 
had  not  returned  the  Areoi  would  have  married 
Mahina. 

"  How  do  you  come  here  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  I  was  hidden  in  the  bowels  of  the  ship,"  answered 
the  man,  defiantly.  He  staggered  as  he  spoke,  and 
Christian  correctly  surmised  that  some  of  the  seamen 
had  given  him  rum  to  drink. 

"  But  why  ?     What  good  can  come  of  this  ? " 

"  That  I  might  be  with  Mahina — she  of  whom 
thou  hast  robbed  me,"  he  replied  savagely. 

"  Poor  fool,"  muttered  the  mutineer  in  English, 
adding  in  Tahitian,  "  Truly  I  pity  thee,  but  yet  thou 
art  a  fool  to  have  hidden  thyself  in  the  ship  ;  for  now 
will  I  make  thee  work  and  thou  shalt  be  a  bond  slave 
to  thy  countrymen." 

"  Not  so,"  answered  the  Areoi  proudly.  "  Have 
not  others  of  my  countrymen  come  with   thee  ;  why, 


THE   END   OF   PIPIRI  107 

then,  should  I  not  live  in  Tubuai  as  an  Areoi  and  an 
Aito  ?  "  (a  warrior). 

"I  will  answer  thee,  Pipiri  the  slaughterer,  thou 
cruel  and  bloody-handed  man  " — and  Mahina  faced 
him.  "Thou  hast  come  for  no  good  purpose  ;  and 
truly  we  should  be  foolish  to  trust  thee,  save  as  a  slave 
may  be  trusted.  Do  I  not  know  that  thou  hast  sworn 
to  be  revenged  because  I  would  have  none  of  thee  ?  " 
Turning  to  her  husband  she  coutinued,  "  Send  this 
man  away.  Let  him  go  live  among  the  Tubuaians, 
and  suffer  him  not  to  come  near  the  ship  nor  our 
people.     I  know  his  bad  and  cruel  heart." 

The  Tahitian  laughed  hoarsely.  "Truly,  Mahina, 
thou  art  a  clever  woman.  I  indeed  will  go  and  live 
with  the  people  of  Tubuai  ;  but  I  swear  by  my  gods 
to  return  and  take  my  revenge." 

The  next  instant  he  sprang  over  the  side,  and 
Christian,  in  an  endeavour  to  soothe  his  wife's  fears 
and  at  her  earnest  entreaty,  gave  the  order  that  he 
was  not  to  be  allowed  to  approach  the  whites  in 
future. 

Parties  were  now  formed  to  fell  timber,  the  fort  was 
planned,  and  men  under  the  direction  of  Edward 
Young  began  to  dig  a  moat  round  the  site.  The 
Bounty^s  armament  of  four  four-pounders  and  ten 
swivels  was  got  on  shore  ;  the  Tahitians  who  had 
accompanied  the  ship  took  an  active  part  in  the  work, 
principally  because  of  the  probability  of  their  seeing 
the  guns  used  in  action  against  the  Tubuaians  and 
witnessing  the  destruction  the  weapons  would  accom- 
plish. 


io8  THE   MUTINEER 

All  this  labour  took  some  weeks  to  perform,  and 
during  that  time  it  daily  became  more  evident  that  the 
people  of  Tubuai  disliked  their  visitors  ;  indeed,  during 
the  last  days  of  unloading  the  ship  and  digging  the 
moat  two  or  three  skirmishes  took  place  between 
them  and  the  white  men  and  their  Tahitian  allies. 

Early  in  September,  however,  so  far  had  the  work 
of  constructing  the  fort  progressed,  that  most  of  the 
people  left  the  ship  and  took  up  their  quarters  therein. 
The  four-pounders  and  swivels  were  mounted  in  such 
a  position  as  to  make  Christian  perfectly  sure  that, 
should  the  Tubuaians  attack  the  stronghold,  they 
would  suffer  a  disastrous  defeat.  But  while  aware 
that  such  an  attack  might  be  made,  he  was  yet 
hopeful  that  ere  long  they  would  recognise  his  desire 
to  live  among  them  in  peace.  Mahina,  day  after  day, 
went  into  the  principal  town,  and  strove  to  impress 
the  head  chief,  Maouri,  that  the  white  men's  advent 
would  prove  of  advantage  to  his  people.  Still,  though 
they  received  the  beautiful  Tahitian  with  the  greatest 
courtesy  and  respect,  they  were  cold  and  suspicious  in 
their  manner.  One  day,  when  accompanied  by  Alrema, 
she  visited  the  village,  they  found  the  whole  population 
assembled  in  the  square,  listening  to  an  address  by  an 
orator.  The  moment  the  two  women  came  in  view 
the  orator  disappeared,  not  so  quickly  but  that  in  him 
they  had  recognised  Pipiri  the  Areoi. 

"Let  us  go  back,"  Mahina  said  to  Young's  wife; 
"  mischief  is  meant  to  us  in  the  fort  ;  else  why  should 
these  people  gather  together  to  listen  to  Pipiri,  who 
is  the  enemy  of  us  all  ? " 


THE   END  OF  PIPIRI  109 

Fearing  that  an  attack  was  intended,  Christian,  as 
soon  as  Mahina  told  him  what  she  had  seen,  doubled 
jl  his  sentries  and  kept  a  careful  watch.  For  two  nights 
I  they  were  undisturbed,  but  on  the  third,  just  after 
I  darkness  had  settled  on  the  island,  Talalu,  a  Tahitian 
■  sentry  on  the  western  face  of  the  fort,  called  them  to 
arms. 

Scarcely  had  they  time  to  snatch  up  their  weapons 
and  fire  a  volley,  when  a  large  party  of  the  islanders 
surrounded  the  fort  on  three  sides  and  began  a  deter- 
mined assault.  With  wild  cries  of  defiance  and  in 
face  of  a  continuous  fire  of  musketry  and  grape  from 
the  swivels,  they  jumped  into  the  moat  and  scrambled 
up  on  the  other  side.  Scores  of  them  were  shot  down 
as  they  appeared  over  the  bank,  for  many  carried 
torches  made  of  the  spathe  of  the  coconut  tree,  with 
which  they  intended  to  fire  the  buildings  within  by 
throwing  them  over  the  palisade  of  coconut  logs  that 
enclosed  it.  The  light  from  these  torches,  slight  as 
it  was,  showed  the  assailants  so  clearly  to  Christian's 
garrison,  that  ere  they  could  form  for  their  second 
rush  McCoy,  Quintal  and  Smith  each  fired  a  swivel 
loaded  with  grape  into  the  surging  mass.  Dreadful 
cries  of  agony  followed,  and  so  terrified  were  the 
Tubuaians  at  the  awful  effects  of  the  fire  that  they 
wavered  and  were  about  to  retreat.  Instantly  half  a 
dozen  chiefs,  waving  their  spears,  sprang  to  the  front ; 
then  the  attacking  party,  beating  their  battle-drums 
loudly,  again  advanced  to  the  assault. 

Suddenly,  as  the  dark,  waving  line  of  Tubuains 
swept  over  the  undulating  ground  which  lay  between 


no  THE  MUTINEER 

them  and  the  western  face  of  the  fort,  a  blaze  of  light 
lit  up  the  surrounding  forest,  and  Mahina  and  the 
other  women  appeared  beside  the  white  men,  carrying 
torches  which  revealed  not  only  the  naked  forms  of 
the  savages  now  trying  to  scale  the  palisade,  but  also 
the  dead  and  wounded  who  had  fallen  from  the  white 
men's  first  fire,  and  who  lay  on  the  edge  of  and  in  the 
bottom  of  the  moat.  So  irresistible,  however,  was  the 
rush  of  the  assailants,  that  fifteen  or  sixteen  of  them 
succeeded  in  clambering  over  the  stockade  and  jumping 
down  into  the  fort.  Armed  with  a  short  stabbing 
spear  in  the  left  and  a  heavy  ebony-wood  club  in  the 
right  hand,  these  daring  fellows  made  a  rush  at  Chris- 
tian, McCoy,  and  Smith,  who  were  firing  through 
the  palisade  at  the  swarm  of  yelling  savages  outside. 
Loud  warning  cries  from  Mahina  and  Alrema  made 
Christian  turn  suddenly,  but  too  late  to  avoid  a  vicious 
thrust  from  a  spear,  which  passed  through  his  left  arm. 
Then  came  the  report  of  a  pistol  close  to  him — 
the  rush  of  foemen  bore  him  back  to  the  palisade 
bruised,  stunned,  and  bleeding,  and  there  he  fell 
exhausted. 

Flinging  the  blazing  torches  into  the  centre  of  the 
fort,  the  women  with  knives  and  cutlasses  in  their 
hands,  sprang  down  from  where  they  stood  to  help 
their  white  husbands  ;  and  while  some  continued  to 
fire  at  point-blank  range  into  the  thick  mass  of  natives 
outside,  the  rest  of  the  white  men  and  Tahitians  made 
short  work  of  those  within.  Soon  not  one  was  left 
alive  ;  the  women,  at  the  command  of  Mahina,  seized 
all  their  dead  bodies,  save  one,  dragged  thern   to  the 


THE  END   OF   PIPIRI  in 

top  of  the  palisade  and  with  cries  of  contempt  hurled 
them  over  among  the  assailants. 

For  nearly  ten  minutes  more  the  Tubuaians  sought 
to  force  an  entrance  through  the  stout  logs,  heedless 
of  the  fire  from  the  seamen's  muskets,  which  were 
thrust  through  the  spaces  and  discharged  with  deadly 
effect.  Seizing  the  musket  barrels  the  valorous 
savages  by  sheer  strength  tore  them  from  the  hands 
of  those  who  held  them,  then  with  cries  of  defiance 
thrust  their  spears  through  the  same  apertures.  By 
this  time  three  of  the  white  men  had  received  severe 
wounds,  and  Young  was  just  about  to  remove  one  of 
the  four-pounders  from  where  it  was  mounted  to  that 
part  of  the  palisading  where  the  assault  was  heaviest, 
when  the  Tubuaians  broke  and  fled. 

"Whew !"  said  Young, wiping  his  powder-blackened 
face  and  addressing  Christian,  whose  arm  was  being 
bound  up  by  Mahina  and  Talalu,  "  that  was  warm 
while  it  lasted.     Not  badly  hurt,  I  trust.  Christian  ?  " 

"  No,"  answered  the  leader,  "  only  a  thrust  from  a 
spear  through  the  arm  ;  the  rascal  meant  it  for  my 
heart,  though,"  and  then  he  closed  his  eyes  from 
weakness.  Round  him  stood  the  seamen,  stripped  to 
their  waists,  with  cutlasses  and  muskets  gleaming  in 
the  dying  light  of  the  torches  which  still  lay  burning 
on  the  ground.  With  one  hand  leaning  on  her 
husband's  shoulder,  in  the  other  a  cutlass  bloody  from 
hilt  to  point,  was  Alrema.  Like  the  men  around  her 
she  was  bare  to  the  waist,  and  her  shapely  arms  and 
bosom  were  as  ensanguined  as  the  weapon  she  carried. 

"  Nay,    Etuati,"    she   panted    with    a   smile   when 


112  THE    MUTINEER 

the  light  shone  on  her  all  but  nude  figure,  and 
startled  Young,  "  'tis  not  my  blood  that  thou  seest ; 
not  once  did  a  spear  touch  me.  Ah,  these  dogs  of 
Tubuai  !  Ah,  my  husband,  thou  didst  not  know  that 
in  our  country  we  women  go  to  war  side  by  side  with 
our  husbands  and  our  lovers." 

Stern  and  callous  as  he  was  by  nature,  the  young 
man  shuddered  visibly  as  he  looked  at  the  shocking 
appearance  of  his  young  wife  ;  stretching  out  his  hand 
he  unclasped  hers  from  the  cutlass,  and  gently  led  her 
towards  the  hut  in  which  she  slept. 

Christian  rose  to  his  feet  and  was  about  to  follow 
them  when  Mahina  stayed  him.  "  Dost  thou  know 
whose  was  the  hand  that  sent  the  spear  ?  "  she  asked. 
"  Come  with  me  and  I  will  show  thee." 

In  the  middle  of  the  stockade  lay  a  naked  savage. 
By  the  light  of  the  torch  held  by  Mahina,  Christian 
saw  the  tatooing  on  the  dead  man's  back  and  legs,  and 
knew  that  he  was  a  Tahitian. 

Stooping  down,  Mahina  turned  the  body  over,  and 
pointed  to  the  face. 

"  Pipiri !  "  exclaimed  Christian. 

"  Aye,  Pipiri  the  Areoi  ;  he  who  swore  to  have 
thy  life  and  mine." 

"  Poor  devil,"  said  Christian  in  English,  and  then  to 
Mahina,  "  he  hath  a  bullet  hole  through  his  chest. 
Who  killed  him  ?  " 

"  I,"  she  answered,  holding  out  Young's  pistol — the 
pistol  with  which  he  had  once  sworn  to  kill  Captain 
Bligh. 


CHAPTER  XIII 


FAREWELL    TO    TUBUAI 


FOR  a  few  days  after  the  battle  the  white  men 
remained  undisturbed  in  the  fort ;  but  instead 
of  the  elation  that  might  have  been  expected  from 
such  a  decisive  victory,  there  now  fell  upon  the 
mutineers  a  strange,  brooding  feeling  of  discontent. 

Stewart  and  Heywood,  ever  bent  upon  retaking  the 
ship  and  returning  with  her  to  England,  had  again  suc- 
ceeded in  alienating  some  of  the  men  from  Christian, 
whose  disregard  of  their  wishes  to  remain  at  Tahiti 
had  aroused  their  resentment. 

Working  upon  this,  Stewart,  little  by  little,  brought 
some  of  these  men  to  believe  that  if  they  aided  him  in 
recovering  the  ship,  they  would  not  only  be  given  a 
free  pardon  for  any  actual  part  taken  in  the  mutiny, 
but  would  be  rewarded  for  their  loyalty  to  Heywood 
and  himself.  Tired  of  the  hardships  and  discomforts 
of  settlement  on  an  island  where  the  natives  were  so 
hostile,  and  already  regretting  their  severance  from 
civilisation,  they  were  not  long  in  promising  to  aid  the 

9  "3 


114  THE   MUTINEER 

two  midshipmen  in  any  scheme  devised  to  recapture 
the  Bounty  and  sail  her  to  England  ;  or,  failing  that, 
to  return  to  Tahiti  and  give  themselves  up  to  the 
King's  ship  that  they  knew  would  be  sent  in  search 
of  them. 

Morrison,  the  boatswain's  mate,  in  particular,  pro- 
fessed his  readiness  at  any  time  that  Stewart  and 
Heywood  might  appoint  to  join  them  in  either 
seizing  the  ship  and  making  Christian  and  Young 
prisoners,  or  escaping  from  Tubuai  and  returning  to 
Tahiti,  and  Alexander  Smith,  ever  on  the  alert  in 
his  devotion  to  Christian,  soon  discovered  that  a  second 
plot  had  been  devised  by  Stewart,  Heywood,  and 
Morrison  to  steal  the  boat,  provision  her,  and  escape 
in  the  night.  It  became  evident  to  Christian  that  his 
authority  would  be  gone  if  he  did  not  either  make 
some  concessions,  or  crush  the  malcontents  at  once 
and  for  ever.  After  discussing  the  matter  seriously 
with  Smith  and  Young,  he  called  the  people  together 
and  addressed  them. 

"  You  all  seem  so  discontented  with  this  place," 
said  he,  "  and  there  are,  I  find,  so  many  of  you  who 
will  not  hesitate  to  turn  traitors  to  the  rest  of  us,  that 
I  have  determined,  if  you  are  agreed,  to  return  to 
Tahiti.  There,  those  who  wish  to  separate  from  me 
can  go,  and  those  who  wish  to  remain  with  me  can 
do  so." 

This  proposal  was  at  once  agreed  to.  It  was  also 
resolved  to  divide  into  two  parts  the  ship's  stores 
and  fairly  share  them  between  the  two  parties  ;  then 
those  who  chose  to  do  so  could  go  ashore  at  Tahiti, 


FAREWELL    TO  TUBUAI  115 

and  those  who  desired  to  stand  by  Christian  could 
accompany  him  in  the  ship  to  some  island  afterwards 
to  be  decided  upon  by  himself  and  his  adherents. 

And  so  once  more  the  worn-out  old  Bounty  was 
floated  out  to  deep  water,  and  all  hands  set  to  work 
to  take  on  board  her  stores  and  armament  again. 
That  part  of  their  labour  accomplished,  Christian 
sent  parties  out  to  collect  the  remainder  of  the  live 
stock,  which  had  not  been  seen  since  the  attack  on 
the  fort. 

But  again  the  islanders  attacked  them  in  such  force, 
and  with  such  undaunted  courage  and  fierce  resolu- 
tion, that  the  landing-party  had  to  retreat  to  the  ship  ; 
and,  indeed,  they  narrowly  escaped  being  cut  off 
before  the  boat  could  rescue  them. 

Christian,  who  was  engaged  with  Mahina,  Alrema, 
and  some  Tahitians  in  bending  on  the  Bounty  s  after 
canvas,  at  once  opened  fire  from  the  ship  to  cover  the 
retreat  of  his  men  ;  as  soon  as  the  boat  came  alongside 
he  ordered  those  in  her  on  deck  for  a  glass  of  grog, 
and  leaving  the  women  to  guard  the  ship,  led  a  strong 
party  on  shore  to  make  a  second  attempt. 

For  nearly  a  mile  they  marched  through  the  rich 
tropical  forest  without  molestation ;  then  there 
suddenly  broke  forth  the  deafening  rattle  of  the  native 
battle-drums,  and  some  five  hundred  Tubuaians — 
among  them  many  women — sprang  out  from  their 
ambush  and  made  a  furious  attack  with  clubs,  spears, 
and  slings.  Fortunately  the  ground  favoured  the 
white  men,  six  of  whom  were  armed  with  muskets 
loaded  with  slugs,  and  these  inflicted  terrible  slaughter 


ii6  THE    MUTINEER 

at  the  first  volley.  Twice  did  the  Tubuains  make 
determined  efforts  to  break  through  and  separate  the 
white  men,  but  throwing  down  their  muskets  and 
keeping  the  Tahitians  in  the  centre,  the  seamen  drew 
their  cutlasses  and  hewed  and  slashed  at  the  naked 
bodies  of  the  savages  till  the  leafy  ground  was  soaked 
and  soddened  into  a  bloody  mire.  But  for  the 
slaughter  inflicted  by  the  muskets  of  the  Tahitians, 
however,  the  enemy  would  have  borne  them  down  by 
sheer  force  of  numbers.  Christian,  whose  great 
strength  and  skill  in  all  muscular  exercises  had  made 
him  famous  in  Tahiti,  fought  with  such  courage  and 
fury  that  he  soon  had  a  pile  of  dead  and  dying 
Tubuaians  forming  a  breastwork  around  him  ;  and, 
leaning  his  weapon  over  their  bodies,  Talalu,  the  big 
Tahitian,  fired  into  the  enemy  at  such  close  range 
that  the  natives  at  last  wavered,  broke,  and  fled. 

So  exhausted,  however,  were  Christian  and  his 
party,  many  of  whom  were  badly  wounded  by  spear- 
thrusts,  that  all  further  attempt  to  recover  the  stock 
was  abandoned,  and  after  two  or  three  hours'  rest  they 
returned  to  the  ship.  At  the  landing-place  they  were 
met  by  a  friendly  chief,  named  Tairoa-Maina,  and 
two  of  his  friends,  who,  always  having  been  well- 
disposed  to  Christian,  took  no  part  in  the  assault. 
They  had  just  arrived  from  the  principal  village, 
where  the  bodies  of  those  who  fell  in  the  attack  were 
brought,  and  with  grim  satisfaction  the  mutineers 
learnt  that  fifty-six  men  and  seven  women  had  been 
killed  and  twice  as  many  badly  wounded,  principally 
by  cutlasses  and  musket  slugs. 


FAREWELL   TO   TUBUAI  117 

Fearing  to  remain  on  the  island  after  the  ship 
sailed,  Tairoa-Maina  besought  Christian  as  his  pledged 
taioj  or  friend,  to  take  him  and  his  two  companions 
away  with  him.     To  this  the  mutineer  consented. 

On  the  following  day,  all  being  in  readiness,  the 
ship  well  stocked  with  provisions,  and  the  wind  being 
from  the  S.E.  the  Bounty  once  more  got  under  weigh. 
Three  days  later  she  was  off  the  island  of  Maitea,  a 
high,  verdure-clad  spot  about  seven  miles  in  extent, 
lying  thirty  miles  due  east  from  the  southern  point 
of  Tahiti. 

Running  in  close  under  the  lee  side.  Christian 
hove-to  the  ship,  called  all  hands  aft,  and  divided 
everything  on  board  into  two  lots  in  readiness  for  the 
time  of  separation.  Then,  before  the  lusty  trade 
wind,  the  'Bounty,  not  waiting  for  the  crowd  of  canoes 
that  were  paddling  eagerly  off  towards  her  filled  with 
natives  shouting  welcome,  stood  away  due  west.  At 
dusk  Tahiti  was  in  sight,  and  on  the  following 
morning  the  ship  once  more  lay  at  anchor  in  Matavai 
Bay. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

THE  LAST  SAILING  OF  THE  "  BOUNTY  " 

ONCE  more  were  the  white  men  welcomed  with 
unaffected  joy  by  the  simple-hearted  Tahitians, 
who  yet  wondered  at  their  second  return  and  made  many 
inquiries  as  to  its  cause.  Among  those  who  thronged  on 
board  were  the  relatives  of  Pipiri  the  Areoi  ;  these 
told  enigmatically  by  Mahina  that  the  priest  would  be 
long  in  returning,  were  at  first  angry  and  then  sus- 
picious ;  but  when  in  answer  to  a  direct  question  put 
to  Christian,  they  learned  that  he  had  been  killed  in 
a  fight  against  his  countrymen  and  their  white  friends, 
they  were  seized  with  shame  and  retired  with  downcast 
faces.  Later  on  in  the  day  came  Tina  and  his  beautiful 
wife,  who  welcomed  Christian  and  his  comrades  with 
every  demonstration  of  affection  and  esteem,  though 
they  too  m.arvelled  at  the  second  return  of  the  Bounty; 
this  Christian  did  not  attempt  to  explain,  knowing  that 
those  Tahitians  who  accompanied  the  ship  would  not 
fail  to  tell  their  countrymen  of  all  the  events  that  had 
transpired  since  they  sailed  from  Tahiti.  But  Tina 
expressed   his  delight  at  hearing  from  Christian  that 

Il8 


THE  LAST  SAILING  OF  THE  "BOUNTY"    119 

many  of  the  Bounty^s  crew  had  returned  for  the  pur- 
pose of  living  among  his  people,  and  readily  gave 
assistance  to  land  the  stores  belonging  to  the  shore 
party. 

For  the  third  time  the  ship  was  now  wooded  and 
watered  and  prepared  for  sea.  When  everything  was 
in  readiness,  Christian  mustered  the  hands,  and  desired 
all  those  who  wished  to  remain  on  shore  to  go  to  the 
larboard  side  of  the  ship,  and  all  those  who  intended  to 
remain  by  him  to  the  starboard.  The  first  to  step  over 
to  the  larboard  were  Stewart  and  Heywood,  who  were 
at  once  followed  by  thirteen  seamen.  His  own  party 
Christian  found  to  consist  of  Edward  Young,  his  next 
in  command  ;  Mills,  the  gunner's  mate  ;  Brown,  the 
gardener  ;  Martin,  McCoy,  Williams,  Quintal,  and, 
of  course,  the  faithful  Alexander  Smith  ;  besides  these 
there  stepped  over  to  starboard  Tarioa-Maina,  the 
young  Tubuaian  chief,  his  two  friends,  and  three 
Tahitian  men  with  their  wives,  one  of  whom  bore 
in  her  arms  a  female  infant.  Each  of  Christian's 
white  followers  had  with  him  a  native  wife,  and 
thus  the  whole  of  his  party  totalled  twenty-eight 
persons. 

For  a  moment  or  two  Christian  looked  from  one  to 
another  of  those  ranged  on  the  larboard  side,  then  told 
them  in  an  unmoved  voice  to  get  into  the  boat.  In  a 
kv/  minutes  they  were  gone,  and  the  boat  was  being 
pulled  shorewards.  Turning  to  those  of  the  ship's 
company  who  were  still  standing  on  the  starboard  side, 
he  informed  them  of  his  intention  to  sail  in  a  day  or 
two,  and  said  he  would  be  pleased  if  they  would  not 


I20  THE    MUTINEER 

visit  the  shore  again.  This  they  unhesitatingly- 
promised. 

That  night — the  22nd  of  September — he  went  on 
shore  in  a  canoe  and,  landing  a  short  distance  from  the 
village,  made  his  way  to  the  house  of  the  chief  Tipa'uu, 
the  father  of  Nuia,  Stewart's  wife. 

Entering  quietly  he  found  the  two  youths  in  con- 
versation with  the  old  chief. 

"  I  have  come,"  he  said,  "  to  say  goodbye  again.  Let 
us  now  speak  together  for  the  last  time,  and  bury  the 
past.  I  can  never  forget  that  until  that  morning 
in  April  we  were  always  good  friends.  Shake  hands 
then,  my  lads,  for  the  last  time." 

"I  am  very  sorry  all  this  has  happened,  sir,"  said 
young  Heywood,  "and  only  just  now  Stewart  admitted 
that  you  were  sorely  tempted,"  and  he  held  out  his 
hand. 

"  God  knows.  Christian,"  said  Stewart,  "  I  bear  you 
no  malice,  for  I  cannot  forget  that  after  we  gave  you 
our  promise  not  to  interfere  with  your  plans  I  induced 
Heywood  to  join  me  in  breaking  that  promise.  I  can 
only  plead  as  my  excuse  that  I  never  intended  to  be  false 
to  that  pledge  ;  but  seeing  many  of  the  men  were 
ripe  to  join  me  in  the  attempt  to  retake  the  ship  I  felt 
justified  in  breaking  it.  I  can  only  say  again  that 
although  you  have  damned  our  prospects  in  life  I  freely 
forgive  you." 

"  Not  so,  Stewart,"  said  the  mutineer,  "  your  reputa- 
tion as  a  loyal  officer  shall  not  suffer,  nor  shall  this 
boy's.  You  are  both  innocent  of  participating  in  my 
crime.     Be  guided  by  me.     Bligh  will  probably  reach 


THE  LAST  SAILING  OF  THE  "BOUNTY"    izi 

England  ;  whether  he  does  so  or  not  a  ship  will  be  sent 
out  to  search  for  us.  When  she  arrives  here,  go  off  at 
once  to  her  and  give  yourselves  up  to  the  commander. 
Tell  him,  as  I  tell  you  now,  that  this  disaster  was 
brought  about  entirely  by  me,  and  I  alone  am  respon- 
sible for  the  act." 

"  I  fear  that  we  shall  have  difficulty  in  clearing  our- 
selves," answered  Stewart,  moodily. 

"  Not  if  you  give  yourselves  up  at  once  and  tell  the 
exact  truth.  No  one,  not  even  my  followers,  not  even 
I  myself,  thought  of  mutiny  until  I  came  on  deck  in 
the  morning  watch,  and  then  the  temptation  suddenly 
came  upon  me.  You  both  know  what  a  life  that 
damned  scoundrel — God  forgive  me  if  I  speak  of  a  dead 
man — led  us  all,  and  how  he  picked  me  out  particularly 
for  his  insults  and  unaccountable  malice." 

"  That  is  true  enough  ;  the  wonder  is  that  you  bore 
with  him  so  long.  But  it  is  too  late  to  talk  of  that 
now,"  said  Stewart,  with  a  ring  of  sympathy  in  his 
voice  ;  "when  do  you  sail,  and  where  are  you 
going  ? " 

"  My  dear  lads,"  he  answered  mournfully,  "  where 
I  am  going  is  a  question  I  cannot  answer,  and  if  I 
could  it  would  be  better  unanswered,  for  you  will  be 
asked  what  has  become  of  me.  I  shall  leave  at  daylight 
and  probably  search  for  some  uninhabited  island  on 
which  to  spend  the  remainder  of  my  life." 

"  The  natives  say  you  do  not  intend  sailing  for  a  day 
or  two." 

"  No,  Stewart.  I  gave  that  out  on  purpose  ;  every 
one  is  on  board  and  all  is  ready,  and  I  hope  to  be  clear 


122  THE   MUTINEER 

of  the  bay  to-morrow  morning,  before  even  a  native  is 
awake,  and  so  by  that  means  avoid  the  fuss  of  another 
leave-taking." 

He  was  silent  for  a  while,  then  turning  to  Heywood, 
earnestly  besought  him  to  see  his  relatives  in  England 
and  tell  them  the  truth.  "  Remember,"  said  he,  "  when 
you  reach  England  my  people  will  have  learned  to  hate 
and  despise  me  as  a  mutineer.  Tell  them  what  you 
have  seen  of  my  sufferings  and  my  provocation,  and  ask 
them  to  forgive  me." 

Silence  fell  upon  them  again  in  the  darkened  house, 
and  nought  was  heard  save  the  heavy  breathing  of  the 
mutineer.  Suddenly  he  rose,  grasped  their  hands  with- 
out a  word,  and,  turning  away,  walked  slowly  down  to 
the  white  line  of  beach  whereon  his  canoe  lay. 

Old  Tipa'uu  awaking  from  his  sleep  a  (ew  minutes 
later,  kindled  afresh  the  dying  fire,  and  as  the  flame 
leapt  up  and  illuminated  the  house  he  saw  that  the 
faces  of  Stewart  and  Heywood  were  wet  with  tears. 

An  hour  before  daylight  Fletcher  Christian,  who  had 
been  shut  up  for  some  hours  alone  in  his  cabin,  came  on 
deck  and  called  the  hands,  and  ere  the  mists  of  Orohena 
had  begun  to  float  away  before  the  chilly  breaths  of  the 
land  breeze,  the  bounty  s  anchor  was  up  to  her  bow, 
and,  with  all  her  canvas  spread,  she  was  slipping  out  of 
the  bay. 

When  daylight  broke  the  natives  gave  a  cry  of 
astonishment,  for  the  ship  had  disappeared. 

***** 

The  story  of  those  of  the  mutineers  who  remained 
at  Tahiti  can  be  told  in  a  it.\\  words.     Who  has  not 


THE  LAST  SAILING  OF  THE  "BOUNTY"     123 

heard  of  the  horrors  of  the  Pandora'' s  "  box,"  the  term 
applied  to  the  round  house  built  by  the  merciless 
Captain  Edwards  of  the  Pandora  frigate  on  the  deck 
of  his  ship  as  a  prison  for  his  wretched  captives. 

The  Pandora^  sent  out  to  search  for  the  mutineers, 
arrived  at  Tahiti  on  March  23,  1791.  The  sailors 
surrendered  themselves,  two  seamen,  Thompson  and 
Churchill  excepted,  for  the  last-named  had  been 
murdered  sometime  previously  by  Thompson,  who  in 
turn  was  killed  by  the  Tahitians,  not  before  he  richly 
deserved  death  for  his  atrocious  crimes. 

The  white  men  had  occupied  their  time  on  shore 
in  building  a  schooner  in  which  some  had  intended  to 
leave  the  island,  but  they  were  unable  to  put  to  sea 
for  want  of  sails. 

Stewart's  wife,  Nuia,  who  was  the  daughter  of  the 
chief  with  whom  he  lived,  had  borne  a  child,  and  her 
love  for  her  white  husband  has  formed  the  theme  of 
many  a  Tahitian  love  song.  When  the  Pandora 
sailed  the  heart-rending  grief  of  this  gentle  girl 
affected  even  the  rough  seamen  whose  duty  it  was  to 
force  her  away  from  Stewart's  side.  Six  weeks  after 
she  died  of  a  broken  heart. 

Amid  the  tears  and  lamentations  of  the  Tahitians, 
the  frigate  left  with  her  prisoners  on  the  19th  of  May, 
the  little  schooner  sailing  with  her.  From  the  day 
the  unhappy  men  surrendered  until  their  arrival  at  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope,  they  were  all  treated  with  great 
brutality  by  Edwards — Heywood  and  Stewart,  officers 
and  mere  youths  as  they  were,  receiving  no  more 
mercy  at  his  hands  than  did  the  others. 


124  THE    MUTINEER 

Three  months  were  spent  by  the  Pandora  in  a  vain 
search  for  the  Bounty  and  those  on  board,  and  then 
the  frigate  was  headed  for  Timor  ;  on  August  28th, 
while  making  her  way  through  Endeavour  Strait, ^^ 
she  crashed  on  a  reef,  and  on  the  following  day  was 
abandoned  a  total  wreck. 

The  previous  inhumanity  of  Captain  Edwards  towards 
his  prisoners  was,  immediately  after  the  ship  struck, 
if  possible,  increased.  For  a  long  time  he  made  no 
attempt  to  save  them  with  the  rest  of  the  ship's 
company.  From  the  box  in  which  they  were  con- 
fined the  only  means  of  egress  was  by  a  scuttle  on  the 
top. 

Some  of  them,  as  the  Pandora  rolled  and  dashed 
them,  heavily  ironed  as  they  were,  from  one  side  to 
the  other  of  their  dreadful  prison,  bruised  and 
bleeding,  cried  out  that  they  would  be  drowned  like 
rats  in  a  hole,  for  already  the  vessel  was  breaking  up 
fast,  but  their  vindictive  gaoler  ordered  them  to  be 
quiet  or  they  would  be  fired  upon.  Only  at  the  last 
moment  did  he  give  the  order  to  take  their  irons  off; 
and  then,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  humanity  of  one 
of  the  Pandora's  boatswain's  mates,  they  would  all  have 
been  drowned.  He,  brave  fellow,  hearing  their  cries, 
declared  he  would  either  free  them  or  drown  with 
them  ;  he  dropped  the  keys  of  their  irons  through  the 
scuttle,  and  with  the  greatest  difficulty  (for  the  water 
was  up  to  his  waist)  forced  off  the  iron  bar  which 
kept  the  scuttle  closed. 

When  the  survivors  reached  a  small  sand  quay  and 

'  Now  know  as  Torres  Straits. 


THE  LAST   SAILING  OF  THE  "BOUNTY"    125 

Edwards  mustered  them  it  was  found  that  thirty-one 
of  the  frigate's  crew  and  Stewart  and  three  of  the 
Bounty's  seamen  were  drowned. 

Then  began  a  long  voyage  to  Coupang  on  the 
island  of  Timor,  there  being  ninety-nine  persons  in  all, 
divided  between  three  boats.  The  story  of  their 
dreadful  sufferings  need  not  here  be  told  ;  but  after  a 
voyage  of  nineteen  days,  on  September  19th,  two  of 
the  boats  reached  Coupang,  the  third  arriving  three 
days  later.  From  Coupang  they  were  conveyed  in  a 
Dutch  ship  to  Java,  where  they  found  the  Resolution 
— the  schooner  built  by  the  Bounty  s  people  at  Tahiti 
— which  had  early  parted  company  with  the  Pandora 
and  had  arrived  six  weeks  before,  her  crew  having 
endured  similar  privations.  From  Batavia  they  were 
taken  to  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  their  numbers 
having  been  increased  at  a  former  place  by  the  addition 
of  more  prisoners — the  survivors  of  the  Bryant  party, 
eleven  convicts  who  had  escaped  from  Sydney.' 

Embarking  in  the  Gorgon^  man-of-war,  at  the  Cape, 
Edwards  and  his  unfortunate  prisoners  at  last  reached 
England  safely,  and  the  mutineers  were  tried  by 
court-martial.  Bligh  was  not  present,  having  sailed 
on  a  second  voyage  to  Tahiti  for  another  cargo  of 
of  breadfruit  plants. 

The  trial  ended  in  the  acquittal  of  three  sea- 
men  and  the   conviction  of  six   others,  among  them 

'  Publisher's  Note. — The  story  of  the  memorable  voyage  of  the  unfor- 
tunate convict,  Will  Bryant,  his  wife  Mary,  her  two  infant  children  and 
seven  male  convicts  has  been  told  by  the  authors  of  this  work  in  a  book 
entitled  "  A  First  Fleet  Family,'' 


126  THE   MUTINEER 

Heywood.  The  general  tenor  of  the  evidence  went 
to  prove  Morrison  and  Heywood  innocent.  But  Bligh 
had  left  behind  him  statements  inculpating  these  men. 
The  Admiralty,  after  the  court-martial  was  over,  con- 
sidered the  evidence  and  ultimately  unconditionally 
pardoned  Heywood,  Morrison,  and  a  seaman  named 
Muspratt,  and  executed  the  others. 

Heywood  and  Morrison  were  permitted  to  re-enter 
the  service,  and  both  of  then  had  honourable  careers, 
the  first  after  attaining  the  rank  of  captain  died  full  of 
years  and  honours  in  1831,  and  Morrison  became 
gunner  of  the  Blenhehn^  in  which  ship,  in  1807,  he  v/as 
lost  with  all  hands. 


END    OF    PART    I 


PART  II 

CHAPTER  XV 

THE    SEARCH    FOR    A    RESTING-PLACE 

THE  Bounty  lay  becalmed  within  a  fev/  miles  of  a 
long,  low-lying  atoll  densely  covered  with 
coconut  trees.  The  wind  had  fallen  light  during 
the  night,  but  though  the  land  was  then  forty 
miles  distant,  the  strong  current  set  the  ship  steadily 
to  the  eastward,  and  now  at  ten  o'clock  in  the 
morning  those  on  her  decks  could  see  between  the 
palm  trees  the  pale  green  waters  of  a  placid  lagoon 
shimmering  in  the  bright  sunlight.  Fifty  miles  north 
and  south  it  stretched,  and  Talalu,  who  with  others  of 
his  countrymen  was  gazing  at  the  £■  range  island  from 
the  fore-yard,  his  dark  eyes  full  of  expectancy,  called 
out  to  Mahina  and  Alrema,  who  were  on  the  poop 
deck,  that  he  could  see  a  great  village  and  many 
people  running  to  and  fro  on  the  beach  getting  ready 
their  canoes  to  come  out  to  the  ship. 

Sitting  aft  upon  the  skylight,  with  two  charts  spread 

out    before    him,  was    the    leader    of  the    mutineers. 

127 


128  THE   MUTINEER 

Although  but  two  weeks  had  passed  since  the  ship  left 
Tahiti,  the  anxieties  of  his  position  had  already  told 
upon  Christian,  and  his  face  was  drawn  and  haggard. 
Mahina  stood  behind  him,  with  her  shapely  hand 
resting  upon  his  shoulder,  and  looked  with  interest  at 
the  pencilled  line  of  the  ship's  course  marked  upon 
one  of  the  charts  by  her  husband.  Opposite  were 
Young,  McCoy  and  his  wife,  and  two  or  three  others 
of  the  mutineers,  while  their  wives  sat  on  the  deck 
and  listened  eagerly  to  what  their  husbands  were 
saying. 

Turning  to  his  comrades,  Christian  pointed  to  the 
larger  of  the  two  charts. 

"  This  island  which  we  are  now  closing  is  called 
Fakarava,  and  there  is  a  good  entrance  into  the 
lagoon.  If  you  think  it  advisable  for  us  to  take  the 
ship  in,  it  can  easily  be  done.  But  I  cannot  see 
that  any  good  will  come  from  our  wasting  the  time. 
As  you  know,  this  is  the  seventh  island  we  have 
sighted  since  we  left  Tahiti,  and  every  one  has  proved 
unsuitable  for  our  purpose." 

"  What's  the  matter  with  this  one?"  said  Williams, 
who  had  just  come  down  from  aloft.  "  It's  big  enough 
for  us  all,  isn't  it  ?  " 

"  Quite,"  answered  Christian  coldly,  "but,  as  I  have 
pointed  out  to  you  before,  while  the  natives  of  all  these 
islands  were  friendly  enough,  the  islands  themselves 
were  most  unsuitable.  They  were  mere  sand  banks 
covered  with  coconuts,  and  although  some  of  them 
were  of  great  extent,  the  narrow  strips  of  land  enclosing 
the  lagoons  were  barely  half  a  mile  broad.     Supposing 


THE   SEARCH  FOR  A   RESTING-PLACE     129 

that  we  had  stayed  on  one  of  them,  stripped  and  sank 
the  ship,  and  lived  ashore,  what  possible  chance  would 
there  have  been  of  concealing  ourselves  if  a  ship  entered 
the  lagoon,  or  what  chance  of  defending  our  refuge? 
None.  None  at  all.  Then,  the  productions  of  such 
places  are  poor ;  there  is  literally  nothing  growing  on 
them  but  coconuts.  But,  as  some  of  you  thought 
that  in  this  group  we  should  easily  find  an  island  as 
fertile  as  Tubuai,  I  acceded  to  your  wishes,  and  we  have 
spent  ten  days  among  them  seeking  a  suitable  spot," 

"I'm  sorry  that  I  was  one  to  persuade  you,  sir,"  said 
Quintal.  "We  ought  to  have  stood  to  the  south  again, 
as  you  wanted  to,  and  got  among  the  high  islands  like 
Tubuai.  As  you  say,  it  would  be  folly  for  us  to  leave  the 
ship  for  any  place  that  we  can't  live  comfortably  on." 

"On  this  chart  of  Captain  Bligh's,"  resumed  the 
leader,  "you  will  see  that  all  these  islands  which  we  are 
now  sailing  among  are  marked  as  'low  coral  lagoons.' 
That  there  are  others  which  do  not  appear  on  the 
chart,  and  which  are  higher  and  more  fertile,  I  have  no 
doubt;  but  I  believe  from  what  Mahina  and  Talalu 
tell  me,  thai  these,  which  have  not  yet  been  discovered 
by  any  navigator,  lie  a  long  way  to  the  south  and  east. 
That  there  is  one  such  place  I  am  certain.  But  before 
we  listen  to  what  my  wife  has  to  say  on  the  matter, 
and  before  I  give  my  own  idea  as  to  the  best  course, 
let  me  remind  you  that  to-day  expires  the  time  we 
agreed  to  spend  in  cruising  among  the  islands  to  the 
north  and  east  of  Tahiti." 

"Aye,  aye,  Mr.  Christian,"  said  Smith,  who  with 
his  wife  had  now  joined  the  party  around  the  skylight. 

10 


130  THE    MUTINEER 

"Up  to  the  present,"  resumed  Christian,  speaking 
slowly  and  coldly,  "  you  have  proved  loyal  to  me,  even 
though  dissenting  from  my  plans.  I,  like  yourselves, 
am  but  a  felon  dodging  the  gallows,  and  it  is  better 
that  you  should  bear  with  me  a  little  longer,  till  I 
succeed  in  finding  a  safe  resting-place  for  us  all.  Then 
it  will  be  every  one  for  himself;  I  shall  have  no  further 
claim  on  your  obedience,  and  you  none  of  any  nature 
on  me." 

An  anxious  look  crept  into  Smith's  eyes,  but  he  had 
no  time  to  say  anything. 

"  Remember,"  continued  the  leader,  "  by  leaving 
Tahiti  with  me  you  have  cut  yourself  off  from  the  last 
chance  you  might  have  had  of  saving  your  necks  if 
captured  by  a  King's  ship  ;  that  being  the  case,  we 
are  all  in  the  same  plight,  and  your  interests  are  also 
mine." 

"Mr.  Christian,  you  have  acted  towards  us  like  a 
man.  I  don't  regret  what  has  happened,  and  I  am 
going  to  obey  you  as  captain  of  this  ship  till  the  end  ; 
and  I  am  very  much  mistaken  if  you  won't  find  every 
man  on  board  of  her  of  my  way  of  thinking." 

It  was  Smith  who  spoke,  and  when  he  had  finished 
he  looked  at  the  others  for  approval.  Every  one  of  them 
answered  heartily,  "Aye,  aye,  go  ahead,  Mr.  Christian  ; 
we'll  see  it  through  under  you." 

A  faint  smile  of  satisfaction  for  a  moment  lit  up 
Christian's  countenance,  but  the  habitual  melancholy, 
which  had  now  settled  upon  him,  returned  the  next 
instant,  and  he  continued  his  remarks  in  cold,  indif- 
ferent tones. 


THE   SEARCH   FOR   A  RESTING-PLACE     131 

"  Before  we  left  Matavai  Bay  I  had  practically  made 
up  my  mind  that  this  island" — and  he  placed  his  hand 
upon  the  smaller  chart — "was  the  most  suitable  place 
for  us  to  reach.  This  book  " — taking  it  from  Mahina, 
"  was  written  by  Captain  Carteret,  and  this  chart  was 
made  by  him  when  he  discovered  the  island,  thirty 
years  ago.  This  is  what  he  says,"  and  opening  the 
book,  he  read  : — 

"On  the  morning  of  July  2,  1767,  a  young  gentleman  named  Pitcairn, 
being  on  the  look-out  at  the  mast  head,  observed  a  spot  on  the  horizon, 
which  on  approaching  it  next  day  appeared  to  rise  like  a  great  pyramid 
out  of  the  sea.  It  proved  to  be  an  island,  one  and  a  half  miles  in  length 
and  four  and  a  half  in  circumference,  its  summit  attaining  a  height  of 
1,008  feet,  itself  surrounded  by  a  coral  reef  and  covered  with  trees.  The 
coast  was  formed  for  the  most  part  of  rocky  projections,  ofF  which  lay 
numerous  fragments  of  stone,  while  a  small  stream  of  fresh  water  trickled 
down  at  one  end  of  the  island.  The  surf,  which  broke  upon  the  shore 
with  great  violence,  remiered  landing  impossible,  but  there  should  be  no 
great  difficulty  in  fine  weather  in  doing  so.  The  place  seems  to  be  unin- 
habited, a  great  number  of  sea-birds  hovered  around,  and  the  waters 
almost  swarm  with  fish." 

"That's  the  place  for  us,  lads,"  said  Quintal,  with 
an  inquiring  look  at  the  others. 

"  You  will  see,"  continued  Christian,  "  that  in  the 
big  chart  the  island  is  not  shown  at  all,  but  in  this 
rough  sketch  of  it,  drawn  by  Captain  Carteret,  the 
position  is  given  as  lat.  20°  l'  south  ;  long.  133°  2i' 
west." 

"Why,  it's  more  than  four  hundred  leagues  from 
Tahiti,"  began  Williams,  when  Christian  checked  him 
by  a  look. 

"  It  is  more  than  that,  as  you  say,  and  whether 
Captain  Carteret's  position  is  correct  or  not,  I  cannot 


132  THE  MUTINEER 

tell ;  I  think  not  ;  for  it  is  known  that  the  instru- 
ments he  had  on  board  the  Swallow  were  very  indif- 
ferent. But  in  another  reference  to  the  island  he  says 
that  it  was  visible  at  fifteen  leagues.  I  think,  there- 
fore, we  could  scarcely  miss  it,  unless  we  ran  by  it  in 
the  night." 

"  That's  true,  sir,"  cried  McCoy  and  Smith. 

"  Well,  as  far  as  I  know,  no  one  but  Carteret  has 
ever  seen  this  place,  and  its  isolated  position  will  be  a 
safeguard  to  us.  Furthermore,  although  my  wife  and 
I  have  talked  of  the  island  often  enough,  I  was  careful 
in  leaving  Tahiti  to  give  neither  Heywood  nor  Stewart 
a  hint  of  our  future  movements.  Now  listen  to  what 
my  wife  has  told  me,  and  then  decide  quickly  whether 
you  will  agree  to  our  standing  to  the  south-east  and 
looking  for  this  Pitcairn." 

Again  the  rest  of  the  mutineers  answered  that  they 
trusted  him,  and  would  follow  his  advice. 

"  Very  well,  then.  My  wife,  as  Talalu  and  your 
own  wives  will  tell  you,  is  not  of  Tahitian  blood.  Her 
ancestors  were  blown  away  to  sea  from  an  island  far 
away  from  Tahiti,  which  they  only  reached  after  spend- 
ing many  months  among  these  islands  through  which 
we  have  been  cruising  for  the  past  ten  days.  Their 
home  lay,  according  to  them,  many  weeks'  fast  sailing 
to  the  south-east  of  Tahiti.  Mahina,  though  she 
knows  but  little  of  the  origin  of  her  people,  yet  knows 
that  the  place  they  came  from  was  called  Afita,  and 
Carteret's  description  of  Pitcairn,  as  far  as  I  have  been 
able  to  make  her  understand  it,  tallies  in  the  main  with 
the  description  she  has  heard  her  mother  give  of  Afita. 


THE   SEARCH    FOR   A   RESTING-PLACE     133 

Remember  that  we  have  with  us  many  Tahitians,  and 
Tairoa-Maina  and  the  other  Tubuaians,  and  it  would 
be  well  to  take  them  into  our  confidence  and  tell  them 
where  we  are  going.  We  cannot  afford  to  deceive 
them." 

He  ceased  speaking  ;  then,  as  no  one  demurred  to 
his  suggestion,  he  asked  Young  to  muster  all  the 
natives  aft.  As  soon  as  they  had  grouped  behind  the 
white  men,  Christian  said  to  his  white  comrades — 

"My  wife  is,  I  think,  a  favourite  with  all  these  men. 
Let  her  talk  to  them  and  tell  them  that  we  are  about 
to  look  for  the  home  of  her  forefathers,  and  they  will 
be  well  content." 

The  seamen  consented,  and  Christian  explained  to 
Mahina  what  was  wanted  of  her.  She,  readily  under- 
standing, at  once  complied  ;  and  it  was  easy  to  see, 
by  the  flush  of  pleasure  upon  her  cheeks  and  her  bright 
smile,  that  the  task  was  a  pleasing  one. 

Placing  her  hand  on  Carteret's  chart,  and  giving  a 
swift  glance  of  intelligence  and  affection  at  Christian, 
she  spoke. 

"See,  men  of  Tahiti  and  Tubuai,  my  husband 
desireth  me  to  tell  thee  of  the  home  of  my  people,  so 
that  ye  may  know  why  it  is  the  ship  stayeth  so  long 
out  upon  the  sea.  It  is  because  that  of  all  the  lands  we 
have  seen  since  we  sailed  we  have  seen  none  so  fair  to 
look  upon  as  Tahiti  and  Tubuai  ;  and  it  is  in  my 
husband's  heart  to  find  a  land  that  shall  be  both  fair  to 
look  at  and  good  to  live  upon.  But  naught  have  we 
yet  seen  but  such  places  as  this,"  and  she  pointed  to 
the  low-lying  island  on  the  larboard  side  j  "  and  so, 


134  THE   MUTINEER 

because  I  have  told  him  of  the  rich  land  from  whence 
my  fathers  came,  it  is  in  his  mind  that  we  go  there 
and  live.  And  I  have  heard  Manuhuru,  my  mother, 
speak  of  this  land,  for  there  was  her  mother  born  and 
there  she  lived,  until  there  came  a  time  when,  with 
many  others,  she  was  blown  out  to  sea  and  returned 
no  more,  for  their  canoe  was  swept  away  by  a  strong 
south  wind  for  many,  many  days  till  they  reached 
strange  islands.  Some  were  killed  by  the  people  of 
these  places,  but  my  mother's  mother,  and  four  others 
with  her,  one  day  stole  a  sailing  canoe  from  the  people 
of  the  island  called  Marutea  and  set  out  again  to  seek 
their  own  home." 

"  Here's  the  place  she  speaks  of,"  said  Christian, 
pointing  to  Marutea  on  the  large  chart,  "  a  good  eight 
hundred  miles  to  the  north-west  of  Pitcairn  Island." 

Whites  and  natives  crowded  round  the  chart  and 
looked  at  the  spot  indicated  by  Christian. 

"  But  again  the  winds  and  the  gods  were  against 
them,  and  so  they  sailed  towards  the  setting  sun,  and 
on  the  tenth  day  saw  the  shadow  of  Orohena  stand 
out  against  the  sea-rim,  and  at  night  they  landed  at 
Tiarapu '  and  dwelt  there  in  peace  among  the  people, 
who  were  kind  to  them.  But  yet  were  their  hearts 
always  towards  their  own  land,  which,  though  it  be 
but  a  small  place,  yet  is  green  as  Tahiti,  and  is  a  land 
good  to  live  in  ;  and  sometimes  when  the  sun  sank 
below  the  sky-rim  and  they  watched  the  top  of 
Orohena  become  wrapped  in  the  white  mists  of  the 
valleys,  they  would  look  at  one  another  and  sigh  and 

'  A  district  in  Tahiti. 


THE   SEARCH   FOR  A   RESTING-PLACE     135 

say  :  *  Ah,  that  is  like  our  land  of  Afita  rising  from 
the  sea.' " 

A  cry  broke  from  Tairoa-Maina,  the  Tubuaian 
chief :  "  Afita !  Truly,  Kirisiani,  thy  wife  and  I 
are  of  one  blood  ;  for  I,  too,  know  of  this  land  which 
riseth  from  the  sea,  and  is  far  away,  towards  the  edge 
of  the  world.  My  father  came  from  Afita,  and  there 
are  many  others  in  Tubuai  whose  fathers  came  from 
there,  long,  long  ago,  in  seven  canoes.  This  did  they 
because  Afita,  though  so  rich,  was  too  small  for  so 
many  to  live  upon.  And  because  of  the  strange  blood 
in  my  veins  it  was  that  the  men  of  Tubuai  liked  me 
not,  and  I  desired  to  come  away  with  thee.  Let  us, 
oh  Kirisiani,  go  seek  the  land  of  Afita,  which  is  far 
towards  the  rising  sun  from  Tubuai.  For  it  is  indeed, 
as  thy  wife  sayeth,  a  land  good  to  look  upon,  and  rich 
in  woods,  and  water  and  fish,  and  yams  and  bread- 
fruit." 

For  some  minutes  there  was  an  excited  buzzing 
of  voices  among  the  natives,  and  the  men  eagerly 
besought  Christian  to  lead  them  to  the  home  of  his 
wife's  people  ;  while  Edward  Young  and  the  rest  of 
the  ship's  company  seemed  equally  interested  and  as 
anxious  to  learn  more.  Presently  Talalu,  who  gene- 
rally acted  as  spokesman  for  his  countrymen,  stepped 
out  from  the  others  and  addressed  the  leader  of  the 
white  men.  This  man,  who  was  the  tallest  and 
strongest  of  all  the  Tahitians  on  board,  had,  like 
Smith,  conceived  a  great  admiration  for  Fletcher 
Christian,  and  had  evinced  it  in  many  ways  since 
the  Bounty  left  Tahiti  ;  and  being  a  man  of  chiefly 


136  THE   MUTINEER 

rank,  his  influence  over  the  rest  of  the  natives  on 
board  was  great. 

"  Kirisiani,"  he  said  simply,  "  I,  Talalu,  the  son  of 
Poahanehane,  will  follow  thee  wherever  thou  goest, 
and  work  and  fight  for  thee.  And  as  I  do,  so  will  my 
countrymen  with  thee  on  the  ship  do.  This  we  swear 
by  our  gods,  and  by  the  blood  in  our  veins." 

And  then  one  by  one  the  simple  brown  people 
crowded  round  Christian  and  touched  his  hands  and  feet 
in  token  of  their  fealty  to  him  ;  and  the  dull,  brooding 
shadow  for  a  little  time  left  his  face  as  he  shook  hands 
with  them  all  in  the  English  fashion,  his  example 
being  followed  by  Young  and  the  rest  of  the  white 
men. 

Then  Tairoa-Maina  pressed  forward,  and  the  hand- 
some chief,  his  black  eyes  gleaming  with  excitement 
at  the  prospect  of  seeing  his  father's  island  home, 
knelt  at  Mahina's  feet  and  touched  the  deck  with  his 
forehead. 

"  And  I  too,"  he  said,  "  will  go  with  thy  husband, 
Mahina,  and  be  a  true  man  to  him  ;  for  is  he  not  a 
man  of  a  good  heart  ?  And  together  shall  we  search 
for  and  find  the  land  of  Afita,  thy  land  and  mine. 
For  now,  Mahina,  when  I  hear  thy  voice,  do  I 
hear  the  voice  of  my  father  that  is  dead  ;  and  it 
may  be  that  thou  and  I  are  of  one  blood.  And  for 
that  alone  would  my  heart  be  for  ever  towards  Kiri- 
siani,  thy  husband." 

Christian  smiled  again.  Despite  his  own  morbid 
nature,  he  had  grown  to  like  the  handsome  Tubuaian, 
and  the  chief's  devotion  to  Mahina  pleased  him  greatly. 


THE  SEARCH    FOR  A    RESTING-PLACE     137 

A  little  behind  were  the  rest  of  Mahina's  country- 
women, who,  not  comprehending  the  discussion,  had 
now  surrounded  her  with  soft  murmurs  of  excite- 
ment, and  presently  Christian,  noting  this,  turned  to 
his  wife  with  a  laugh — the  first  for  many  months. 

"This  is  well,  Mahina,  that  thy  countrymen  are 
so  with  thee  and  me  ;  but  what  say  all  these  women 
to  this  search  for  the  land  of  Afita  ?  " 

She  turned  her  lustrous  eyes,  beaming  with  affec- 
tion, on  the  mutineer.  "It  is  not  the  part  of  a  woman, 
unless  she  be  a  great  ruler,  to  say  aye  or  nay  to  her 
master's  will  ;  and  surely  thou  didst  not  think  to  ask 
these  women  their  thoughts  on  this  matter.  That 
would  be  folly." 

"  'Tis  a  good  doctrine,  Mahina,"  answered  Christian; 
"  there  will  be  no  man-and-wife  quarrels  to  break  our 
peace  on  Afita."  Then,  pressing  her  hand,  he  turned 
away  to  attend  to  the  ship. 

"  Here  comes  a  fleet  of  canoes,"  called  out  Quintal 
to  Young,  and  almost  at  the  same  moment  the  glassy 
surface  of  the  water  stirred  and  rippled  to  the  breeze 
as  it  came  darkening  along  from  the  north-east  to  fill 
the  Bounty's  sails. 

"  Never  mind  the  canoes,"  answered  Young,  fling- 
ing down  the  mainbraces  ;  "  get  the  head-sheets 
over ;  and  here,  away  to  the  main  deck,  all  you 
women  ! — out  of  the  way  and  give  us  a  pull  on  the 
braces  ! " 

So  with  many  a  bubbling  laugh  and  merry  jest  the 
Tahitian  women  tripped  down  and  seized  the  ropes 
in  their  soft  little  hands ;  and  as  the  ship  leaned  gently 


138  THE   MUTINEER 

over  and  the  froth  began  to  bubble  under  her  bluff  old 
bows,  Christian  put  the  helm  hard  up,  wore  her  round, 
and  set  her  head  to  the  south-east. 

Mahina,  standing  beside  him,  gazed  intently  into 
her  husband's  eyes  as  he  looked  at  the  compass  ;  then 
as  he  steadied  the  ship  she  watched  him  inquiringly  ; 
and  he  nodded  and  smiled  at  her  in  return. 

"  Aye,  Mahina,  that  is  where  we  must  go  to  seek 
for  Afita  ;  may  we  find  it  soon."  He  gave  over  the 
wheel  to  Williams,  walked  quietly  away,  picked  up 
the  charts  and  books,  and  went  below. 

But  on  the  main-deck,  as  the  long,  palm-clad  line 
of  Fakarava,  with  its  white  gleam  of  sandy  beach, 
sank  slowly  below  the  horizon,  the  white  seamen  and 
their  native  wives  and  the  rest  of  the  ship's  company 
sang  and  laughed  and  chattered  ;  and  as  the  Bounty 
slipped  over  the  long  ocean  rollers  she  spread  on  either 
side  white  sheets  of  snowy  foam,  and  surged  along 
before  the  lusty  breath  of  the  ever-freshening  breeze. 

So  began  the  search  for  the  land  of  Afita. 


CHAPTER    XVI 

THE    FLIGHT    OF    THE    KANAPU 

ON  further  careful  study  of  Carteret's  book  and 
chart,  the  mind  of  Fletcher  Christian  was  greatly 
disturbed,  for  he  knew  that  there  was  much  to  fear  if 
the  position  of  Pitcairn  had  been  wrongly  laid  down. 
The  currents,  too,  in  this  part  of  the  world  were  but 
little  understood  by  those  few  navigators  who  had 
sailed  among  the  islands  ;  indeed,  the  natives  them- 
selves were  far  better  informed  of  both  the  winds  and 
currents  of  Eastern  Polynesia  than  were  the  few 
European  voyagers  among  the  various  groups  since 
the  days  of  Carteret  and  Cook. 

Carteret  had  laid  down  the  centre  of  Pitcairn  in 
lat.  20°  2'  south,  and  long.  133°  21''  west  ;  but 
although  Christian  was  fairly  confident  of  sighting  the 
island  by  keeping  a  careful  look-out  and  heaving-to 
at  night  when  he  got  near  it,  he  felt  that  his  limited 
knowledge  of  the  winds  and  currents  might  lead  to 
prolonged  and  tedious  search. 

For  twenty-one  days  after  leaving  Fakarava  the 
Bounty  sailed  south-easterly.     Several  low-lying  atolls 

139 


i+o  THE    MUTINEER 

were  sighted,  but  no  sign  of  high  land  had  been 
seen  ;  yet,  by  Christian's  calculations  (only  revealed 
to  Young,  Smith,  and  McCoy),  he  had  twice  sailed 
over  the  position  assigned  to  the  island  by  Carteret. 
His  misgivings  that  a  strong  current  had  set  him  too 
far  to  the  eastward  were  daily  growing  stronger.  His 
only  chronometer,  through  an  accident,  had  been 
rendered  useless,  and  besides  this  the  weather  latterly 
was  gloomy  and  the  sun  seldom  visible.  The  last 
land  had  been  sighted  eighteen  days  after  leaving 
Fakarava,  and  Talalu  and  Tairoa-Maina,  who  from 
the  break  of  day  were  continuously  aloft  on  the  look- 
out, assured  him  on  that  day  that  no  land  lay  further 
to  the  south-east  but  Afita  and  a  little  sandy  island 
called  Oeno,  about  half  a  day's  sail  to  the  northward. 
Small  as  this  island  was,  they  declared  that  the  clamour 
of  the  sea-birds,  whose  resting-place  it  was,  would  reveal 
its  presence  even  on  the  darkest  night  ;  and  this  alone 
somewhat  reassured  him  in  the  hope  that  he  had  not 
drifted  past  it  or  Pitcairn  in  the  darkness.  A  day's 
sail  further  to  the  eastward  was  another  island  which 
they  said  was  called  Fenua-manu  ;  ^  this,  too,  was  the 
home  of  millions  of  sea-birds,  whose  voices  stilled 
the  beating  of  the  surf  upon  the  reefs,  so  great  were 
their  numbers. 

With  his  chin  upon  his  hands,  Fletcher  Christian 
gazed  moodily  at  the  chart  before  him.  Mahina,  who 
by  the  cabin  door  was  watching  him  with  tender 
interest,  heard  him  sigh  wearily.     Stepping  up  to  him, 

Ducie  Island,  about   ninety    miles  east   of  Pitcairn.      It  is  unin- 
habited now.   The  old  name,  Fenua-manu,  meant  "  The  Isl-and  of  Birds.' 


THE   FLIGHT  OF    THE   KANAPU        141 

she  pressed  her  cool  hand  to  his  forehead,  and  leant 
her  cheek  against  his  in  loving  sympathy. 

In  the  great  cabin  no  sound  broke  the  stillness  save 
the  swish  and  swirl  of  the  ship's  wake  as  she  slipped 
through  the  water ;  and  presently  Christian,  drawing 
the  girl's  slender  figure  to  a  seat  beside  him,  pointed 
to  the  chart. 

"Mahina,"  he  said,  "you  and  three  of  my  white 
comrades  alone  know  that  the  ship  hath  twice  sailed 
over  the  place  where  this  island  of  Afita  should  have 
been  ;  and  no  sign  have  we  yet  seen,  not  even  a  drifting 
coconut  or  a  piece  of  wood." 

The  girl's  eyes  filled  with  tears ;  for  a  few  moments 
her  bosom  heaved,  and  she  tried  to  speak  without 
showing  her  emotion  ;  and  Christian,  moody  and  pre- 
occupied as  he  was,  knew  by  her  voice  that  she  felt 
for  and  sympathised  with  him. 

"  Kirisiani,  I  too  have  looked  and  looked  and  prayed 
to  Oro  and  Tane  to  guide  the  ship  to  Afita,  but  now 
I  begin  to  fear  that  the  gods  have  turned  aside  from 
me. 

He  pressed  her  hand  in  silence,  and  was  about  to 
bid  her  come  with  him  on  deck  when  the  murmuring 
of  voices  at  the  door  of  the  great  cabin  broke  in  upon 
them,  and  presently  Talalu,  Tairoa-Maina,  and  two 
other  natives  asked  leave  to  speak  with  him. 

"  Let  them  wait  awhile,"  he  said  sullenly,  although 
knowing  that  in  the  Tubuaian  chief  and  his  Tahitian 
comrade  he  had  two  firm  friends,  who  with  Smith, 
Young,  and  McCoy  would  stand  by  him  to  the  last. 
For  nearly  half  an  hour  he  remained  communing  with 


'42  THE   MUTINEER 

himself  and  endeavouring  to  think  out  some  other 
course  for  the  future,  should  his  search  be  still  un- 
rewarded on  the  following  day. 

Already  the  long  voyage  had  had  a  bad  efFect  upon 
most  of  the  mutineers,  and  only  that  morning  he  had 
noticed   the  gloomy  faces  and  sullen  manner  of  the 
men  when  changing  the  ship's  course  another  point  to 
the  southward.     Some  of  the  Tahitians  were  sufFering 
from  the  effects  of  the  strange  food  which,  for  weeks 
they  had  been  forced  to  live  upon,  and  the  confinement 
told  seriously  on  their  health  and  spirits.     Yet,  despite 
this,  their  regard  for  Mahina,  and  their  faith  in,  and 
respect  for  Christian  were  unbroken,  and  they  would 
have  endured  the  most  prolonged  hardships  rather  than 
let  either  imagine  that  they  were  repining.    With  some 
of  the  white   seamen,  however,   these    feelings  were 
wanting.     Although  there  was  no  open  expression  of 
discontent,  more  than    one  murmured  at  the   delay 
declaring  that  Christian  and  Young,  either  through 
Ignorance  or  design,  were  not  doing  their  duty  to  their 
associates. 

It  was  no  wonder,  therefore,  that  Christian  himself 
grew  day  by  day  more  anxious  and  less  confident  of 
finding  this  island  of  Carteret's.  True,  the  place  was 
small  and  solitary,  and,  unless  his  reckoning  was 
very  exact,  might  easily  be  missed.  Twice  had  he 
sailed  across  Carteret's  position,  and  nothing  had 
rewarded  his  search  ;  and  now  he  felt  that  another 
daysfrmtless  quest  would  assure  him  either  that  his 
observations  had  been  incorrect  or  that  the  island  had 
disappeared  by  some  convulsion  of  nature.    Worn  out 


THE    FLIGHT   OF   THE  KANAPU        143 

with  anxiety,  with  constant  watching,  and  his  own  sad 
emotions,  nothing  but  the  devotion  and  tender  love  of 
Mahina  had  kept  him  from  ending  it  all  with  a  loaded 
pistol  which  he  always  carried  in  his  pocket. 

He  pushed  the  chart  away  wearily,  and  was  about 
to  go  on  deck  when  Mahina,  who  had  remained, 
touched  his  arm,  and  with  a  timid,  beseeching  look 
asked  him  to  let  Tairoa-Maina  and  the  other  natives 
have  speech  with  him. 

"  Come  in,  friends,"  he  said,  in  kindly  tones. 

The  Tubuaian  chief,  who,  with  Talalu  and  two 
other  natives,  had  been  patiently  waiting  at  the  cabin 
door,  came  in,  sat  silently  down,  and  waited  permission 
to  speak. 

"Speak,  my  brother,"  said  Mahina  to  Tairoa-Maina. 
"My  husband  is  wearied,  and  would  go  out  upon  the 
deck  to  breathe  the  cool  wind  of  the  night." 

Pleased  at  the  relationship  assigned  to  him  by 
Christian's  wife,  the  handsome  young  Tubuaian 
looked  at  them  with  affectionate  regard,  and  said  he 
and  those  with  him  desired  to  speak  of  something  in 
their  minds,  at  which  they  prayed  him  not  to  be 
angered,  "  for,"  he  added,  with  a  grave  smile,  "  we 
men  of  brown  skin  are  but  fools  on  the  great  ocean 
when  the  sky  is  dull  and  there  is  neither  sun  nor 
moon  nor  stars  to  guide  us.  But  with  the  clever 
white  men  it  is  different ;  they  are  full  of  wisdom 
to  guide  a  ship,  even  if  there  be  neither  sun  by  day 
nor  stars  by  night.  Yet  in  some  little  things  we  have 
wisdom,  and  that  is  why  we  now  ask  that  thou, 
Kirisiani,  will  listen  to  us — who  are  thy  friends." 


144  THE  MUTINEER 

"  That  I  well  know,"  said  the  mutineer,  placing  his 
hand  on  Tairoa's  shoulder.     "  Speak,  my  brother." 

"Thou  knowest,  Kirisiani,  that  for  many  days  I 
have  climbed  the  masts  and  watched,  so  that  I  might 
be  the  first  to  see  the  land  of  Afita  ;  and  when  it  grew 
dark  I  have  waited  upon  the  deck  and  listened  to 
hear  if  the  sound  of  beating  surf  came  over  the  sea. 
Last  night,  as  Talalu  and  I  lay  on  the  deck,  and  the 
ship  rose  and  fell  and  made  no  sound,  we  saw  first  one 
and  then  another  of  the  birds  called  kanapu'^  fly  swiftly 
over  the  ship  towards  the  westward.  As  we  watched 
there  came  another,  and  then  another,  and  then  a  flock 
of  twenty  or  more,  and  these  too  all  flew  swiftly  west- 
wards, for  we  saw  their  shadows  darken  the  bright 
strip  of  water  that  shot  out  from  the  dying  moon. 
Then,  as  we  lay  down  again,  there  came  to  our  minds 
that  on  Oeno,  the  little  sandy  islet  but  a  day's  sail 
from  Afita,  there  do  the  kanapu  breed  in  the  thick 
puka  scrub  which  groweth  in  the  sand." 

"  True,"  said  Mahina  quickly  ;  "  I  have  heard  my 
mother  say  that  on  Oeno  the  cries  of  the  kanapu  when 
they  come  home  to  roost  at  night  drown  the  noise  of 
the  breaking  surf." 

"Aye,"  said  the  Tubuaian,  "and  so  have  I  been 
told.  Yet  only  at  night  ;  for  in  the  daytime  they  fly 
to  the  lagoon  of  Fenua-manu,  where  they  find  many 
fish.  We  talked  of  this  as  we  lay  on  the  deck,  and  I 
desired  to  come  and  tell  thee,  Kirisiani,  of  the  flight 
of  the  birds,  but  feared  that  thou  wouldst  chide  me 

'  The  Equatorial  booby,  whose  swift  flight  is  only  surpassed  by  that 
of  the  frigate  bird. 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  THE  KANAPU  145 

for  doubting  thy  skill  to  guide  the  ship.     But  I  have 
heard  some  of  those  with  us  say  some  little  things." 

Christian  smiled  bitterly.  "  They  speak  truly,  my 
friend  ;  I  cannot  find  this  land  of  Afita." 

Leaning  over  towards  him  and  placing  his  hand 
on  Christian's,  the  Tubuaian  continued  :  "  But  this 
morning,  when  the  lower  half  of  the  sun  was  still 
buried  in  the  sea,  we  saw  many,  many  kandpu  and 
katafa '  flying  swiftly  towards  it,  and  Afita  lieth 
between  Oeno  and  Fenua-manu." 

Christian's  eyes  sparkled.  "  Thanks,  my  good  friend. 
I  see  now  thy  meaning.  For  two  days  have  I  thought 
that  the  ship  hath  come  too  far  towards  the  rising  sun, 
and  that  the  place  we  seek  lieth  westward." 

"  Even  so  think  we,"  answered  Talalu,  "  for  the 
current  runneth  strong  towards  the  rising  sun,  and 
the  kandpu  and  the  katafa  went  westward    to  rest." 

For  a  little  while  Christian  considered.  Oeno,  the 
sandy  island  which  both  Mahina  and  Tairoa  asserted 
was  but  a  day's  sail  north  and  west  from  Afita,  was 
not  marked  in  any  of  the  two  or  three  charts  he 
possessed,  but  Ducie  Island,  the  "Fenua-manu,"  or 
Island  of  Birds,  of  the  natives,  was,  and  lay  due  east  of 
Oeno.  And  he  knew  the  natives  relied  much  upon 
simple  indications  to  find  their  position  when  making 
long  voyages  at  sea.     He  soon  made  up  his  mind. 

"  We  will  turn  the  ship  to  follow  the  kandpu^''  he 
said. 

The  natives  sprang  to  their  feet,  and  with  animated 
countenances  waited  for  him  to  precede  them  on  deck. 

'  Frigate  birds. 
I  I 


146  THE  MUTINEER 

The  'Bounty^  with  the  gentle  trade-wind  fiUing  her 
sails,  was  steering  an  E.N.E.  course,  when  Christian, 
with  Mahina  and  the  others,  came  on  deck.  Sitting 
near  the  wheel  was  Young,  who  had  charge  of  the 
watch. 

"  Young,"  said  Christian,  "  I  am  convinced  that  if 
this  island  is  in  existence  it  is  to  the  west  of  us." 

"So  Alrema  says,"  nonchalantly  replied  the  young 
man  ;  "  but  I  didn't  think  it  worth  while  mentioning 
it." 

"  What  do  you  say  ?     Shall  we  keep  her  away  ?  " 

"Certainly — why  not  ?  As  we  cannot  find  it  our- 
selves by  the  chart  let  us  go  west  by  all  means." 

"  Hands  to  the  braces,  men  ! "  called  out  Christian 
after  a  moment's  hesitation.  "  We  are  ffoino;  to  run 
down  to  the  westward." 

In  a  few  minutes  the  yards  were  hauled  round,  and 
the  'Bounty  was  heading  west  by  north.  Telling 
Talalu  and  Tairoa  to  go  aloft.  Christian  turned  to 
Young  and  Smiith  and  related  the  incident  of  the 
previous  night. 

About  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  just  as  Chris- 
tian was  about  to  lie  down  for  an  hour,  there  burst 
from  Talalu  on  the  fore  top-gallant  yard  a  cry  that  sent 
a  thrill  through  the  hearts  of  every  one  on  board — 

"2>  fenua  no   Afita  ! ''   ("The   land  of  Afita  !  "). 

There  was  a  sudden  rush  aloft.  Christian  himself 
ascending  the  main  rigging  slightly  in  advance  of 
McCoy,  Quintal,  and  Young. 

"  There  it  is,  sir, !  "  said  Quintal  excitedly,  pointing 
almost  right  ahead. 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  THE  KANApU  1+7 

Then  as  the  others  saw  the  faint  blue  outline  of  a 
pyramidal  peak  rising  from  the  sea,  a  cheer  broke 
from  them,  and  the  people  on  the  deck  took  it  up  and 
repeated  it  again  and  again. 

"  Thank  God  !  "  said  Christian  to  Edward  Young;. 
Instinctively  their  hands  met,  and  in  silence  they  all 
gazed  intently  at  the  little  spot,  which  at  that  far  dis- 
tance no  eye  but  that  of  a  seaman  or  a  native  could 
distinguish  from  a  cone-shaped  cloud. 


CHAPTER  XVII 


THE     STORY     OF     AFITA 


TOWARDS  sunset,  when  the  Bounty  was  still 
some  thirty  miles  distant  from  the  land,  the 
trade-wind  as  usual  died  away,  and  by  eight  in  the 
evening  the  new  moon  shone  over  a  sea  as  calm  as  a 
mountain  lake.  Fearing  that  the  easterly  current 
would  set  the  ship  back  in  the  night  during  the 
continuance  of  the  calm.  Christian  and  Young  had 
carefully  taken  the  ship's  bearings  just  as  the  pale 
blue  of  the  distant  island  was  changing  to  a  shade  of 
purple  under  the  rays  of  the  setting  sun. 

The  knowledge  that  their  long  search  was  ended 
at  last  inspirited  every  one  on  board.  After  supper 
the  men  gathered  on  the  main  deck,  and  with  their 
wives  and  their  brown-skinned  shipmates  forgot  the 
weary  days  which  had  tried  their  tempers  and  for- 
bearance so  severely.  Alrema,  who  had  an  influence 
upon  her  countrymen  almost  equal  to  that  of  Mahina, 
was  in  high  spirits,  and  Young,  despite  his  usual 
seeming  indifference  to  her  vivacity  and  beauty,  was 

yet  sscretly  pleased  to  see  the  respect  with  which  she 

148 


THE  STORY  OF  AFITA  149 

was  treated  by  the  others.  Her  conduct  during  the 
attack  on  the  fort  at  Tubuai  had  shown  her  to  be 
possessed  of  a  fiery,  undaunted  courage  ;  indeed,  had 
the  murmurers  known  that  this  beautiful  Tahitian  girl 
with  the  dark,  languorous  eyes,  and  soft  red  lips  had 
advised  Young  to  induce  Christian  to  shoot  them, 
they  would  have  remembered  the  incident  of  the 
bloody  cutlass,  and  been  more  careful  of  their  speech 
in  her  hearing.  Yet  now  she  seemed  but  a  merry- 
hearted,  mirth-loving  girl,  and  as  she  raised  her  sweet 
voice  in  some  old  Tahitian  love-song,  while  her  eyes 
sought  those  of  Edward  Young,  the  men  were  struck 
with  her  bright  and  animated  beauty. 

Tired  of  singing  and  talking  with  the  group  assem- 
bled on  the  main-deck,  she  presently  ascended  to  the 
poop,  where  her  husband  sat  with  Christian  and 
Mahina  discussing  their  plans  for  the  future. 

She  seated  herself  beside  Young,  and  listened  till 
they  ceased  talking — then  said,  clasping  Mahina's 
hand  in  her  own,  "Tell  us,  oh  friend  of  my  heart, 
the  story  of  this  land  of  Afita." 

"  Nay,"  replied  Mahina,  smiling  and  stroking 
Alrema's  dark  hair,  "  'tis  but  little  I  know,  and  that 
little  did  I  learn  from  my  mother  ;  but  call  hither 
Tairoa-Maina,  and  let  him  tell  the  story,  for  he  hath 
more  knowledge  of  Afita  than  I." 

Christian's  consent  having  been  gained,  the  Tubu- 
aian  chief  was  called  upon  the  poop,  and  sat  in  front 
of  the  little  group  with  his  two  faithful  attendants 
behind  him  ;  his  swart,  handsome  features  lit  up  with 
pleasure  when  he  was  told  what  was  wanted  of  him. 


150  THE  MUTINEER 

"  Kirisiani,"  said  Mahina,  caressing  her  husband's 
cheek  with  her  soft,  brown  hand,  "  but  for  this  dear 
friend,  Tairoa-Maina,  still  might  we  have  been  search- 
ing for  this  land  of  his  and  my  father's." 

"  True,"  answered  Christian  frankly,  "  but  for  him 
we  might  perhaps  have  never  found  it.  Thou  seest, 
Mahina,  that  in  some  things  the  white  men  have  not 
the  knowledge  nor  judgment  of  thy  people." 

"  Even  so,"  she  answered   gravely,  "  we  have   no 
such    things  as  those  tuhi^   of  thine  which  are  full 
of  wisdom.     And  it  is  strange  to  us  that  by  looking 
at    some  little  black    marks  thou  couldst  tell    us  of 
the  sea  chief  who  saw  the  land  of  Afita  thirty  years 
ago.     Yet,  though  we  have  no  wise  men  among  us 
like    thee    and  the    great  Tuti    and    Pirai,    we    have 
memories  and  songs  and  tales  which  have  come  down 
from  father  to   son  ;    and  all   that  is  told  is  remem- 
bered by  the  children,  and  they,  when  they  grow  up, 
tell  it  to  their  children,  so    that  all  may  know   the 
beginning  of  things  since  Taaroa  the    father   of  the 
gods  and  his  two  sons  Oro  and  Tane  made  the  world." 
Acquainted  as  he  was  in  some  degree  with  the  wild 
and  fabulous  nature  of  almost  every  Polynesian  tradition 
bearing  upon  the  ancestry  of  the  people,  Christian  was 
convinced   by   the  many  long  conversations   he   had 
held  with   Mahina  about    her  descent  that  much  of 
what  she  told  him  had  a  basis  of  fact.     The  Tahitian 
custom  of  deifying    their  ancestors   would   naturally 
result  in  confusing  historical  facts  and  rendering  them 
absurd,  but  his  keen  observation  and  quickly  acquired 

'  Books,  handwriting  and  maps. 


THE  STORY  OF  AFITA  151 

knowledge  of  the  Tahitian  tongue  enabled  him  to 
sift  out  in  a  great  measure  the  real  from  the  fabulous 
and  visionary.  He  therefore,  while  listening  to 
Tairoa-Maina's  story  of  Afita,  quickly  divested  it  of 
all  that  was  mythological  and  fictitious,  and  accepted 
the  substance  of  it  as  fact. 

To  his  mind  much  of  what  Mahina  told  him  of 
Afita  had  appeared  no  more  than  the  vague  traditions 
of  native  legend,  but  as  he  listened  to  the  Tubuaian 
chief's  story  he  found  a  remarkable  resemblance  be- 
tween the  two  accounts. 

Sitting  in  the  light  of  the  moon,  which  fell  upon 
his  symmetrical  head  and  shoulders  and  revealed  the 
curious  and  delicate  tracery  of  the  tattooing  upon  his 
polished  skin,  the  young  chief  related  the  Tubuaian 
story  about  the  land  and  the  people  whence  he  came. 

"Long,  long  ago,  Kirisiani,  Taaroa  the  Sky-Pro- 
ducer, and  Oro  and  Tane  his  sons,  between  them 
created  new  lands  by  dipping  their  hands  to  the 
bottom  of  the  deep  sea  and  dragging  them  up  above 
the  surface,  so  that  the  trees  might  grow  and  men 
live  upon  them.  In  those  days  there  dwelt  upon 
Huahine  a  taata  paari  (wise  man)  named  Poiata, 
who  had  himself  been  created  by  the  gods,  and  his 
wife  Mahinihini.  In  the  same  house  lived  Rumia 
and  his  wife  Motupapa ;  only  these  four  were  on 
Huahine.  At  the  end  of  two  years  neither  of  the 
women  had  borne  a  child  to  their  husbands,  and  Poiata 
and  Rumia,  assailing  them  with  bitter  words  and 
blows,  drove  them  away  to  the  sea-shore,  and  bade 
them  go  swim  out  into  the  ocean  and  drown. 


152  THE  MUTINEER 

"  *  Nay,'  cried  Mahinihini,  '  give  us  a  canoe,  so  that 
at  least  we  may  seek  some  other  land  and  hide  the 
shame  of  our  childlessness.'  " 

"  But  Poiata  and  Rumia  laughed  and  jeered  at 
them,  and  pointing  to  a  great  shark  that  lay  upon 
the  water  outside  the  reef,  mockingly  bade  them  hold 
on  to  its  fin  and  begone. 

"  Now  this  shark  was  Tahua  ; '  and  the  two 
women,  who  wept  as  they  swam,  approached  him 
silently,  and  clambering  upon  his  great  back,  held  on 
to  his  fin  while  Tahua  sped  away  with  them. 

"  For  many  days  he  swam  southward  and  eastward, 
till  Mahinihini  and  Motupapa  saw,  rising  out  of  the 
sea,  what  seemed  the  fin  of  another  great  shark  ;  so 
high  was  it  that  it  pierced  the  clouds,  even  as  does  the 
peak  of  Orohena.  But  when  they  drew  near  they 
saw  that  it  was  land  rising  up  steeply  from  the  deep 
sea,  and  on  the  high  cliff's  there  stood  strange  men 
with  yellowish  faces  and  circlets  of  red  and  green 
parrots'  feathers  round  their  foreheads.  As  the  two 
women  gazed  in  fear  and  trembling,  Tahua  the  shark 
sank  from  beneath  them,  and  they  struck  out  and 
swam  to  the  shore.  The  strange  men  ran  down  the 
cliffs  and  helped  them  to  land,  and  gave  them  food  to 
eat  and  coconuts  to  drink.  Seven  men  were  they, 
and  they  said  they  came  from  a  great  country  to  the 
east  where  the  mountain-tops  were  for  ever  covered 
with  white  clouds." 

"  How  came  they  there  ?  "  asked  Christian. 
Tairoa-Maina  shook  his  head.    "  No  man  knoweth. 

'  One  of  the  gods  of  Tahitian  mythology. 


THE  STORY  OF  AFITA  153 

But  they  were  pleased  to  see  Motupapa  and  Mahini- 
hini,  for  there  were  no  women  with  them  on  the 
island,  which  they  had  named  Afita — '  the  land  shot 
up  by  fire  from  the  bottom  of  the  sea.'  So  these  two 
women  became  wives  to  the  seven  men,  and  they  bore 
seven  children  to  each  man.  By  and  by,  as  the  years 
passed  on,  there  came  more  of  the  strange  people  from 
the  great  eastern  land  ;  and  they  were  pleased  with 
the  beauty  of  Afita  and  the  great  richness  of  the  land, 
and  dwelt  with  Mahinihini  and  Motupapa  and  their 
husbands.  Very  joyously  they  lived  together,  until 
the  people  grew  so  in  number  that  breadfruit  and 
taro  and  yams  and  plantains  began  to  be  scarce 
because  of  the  many  mouths  of  children  who  cried 
with  hunger.  And  when  the  land  would  no  longer 
hold  them  and  famine  came,  twenty-and-two  score  men 
and  women  sailed  far  away  in  canoes  to  seek  another 
home.  Westward  they  sailed  for  ten  days  till  a  storm 
separated  them,  and  four  of  the  canoes  came  to  the 
land  of  Tubuai,  and  four  to  the  land  of  Rapa.^  Of 
those  that  reached  the  land  of  Rapa  I  know  nought, 
save  that  the  chief  was  named  Teata-rua  ;  but  of 
those  that  came  to  Tubuai  my  father  was  one." 

"  And  did  he  ever  tell  thee  how  appeared  this  Afita, 
this  lonely  island  that  springeth  up  from  the  sea  like 
the  fin  of  a  shark  that  swimmeth  on  the  surface  ?" 
asked  Mahina. 

"  I  have  heard  my  father  say,"  answered  the  chief, 
"  that  so  steep  are  its  mountains  that  they  shut  in  from 

'  Rapa  is  situated  in  27°  30'  S  ;  144°  30'  W.  and  would  easily  be 
made  by  sailing  W.  from  Pitcairn. 


154  THE   MUTINEER 

the  winds  the  rich  soil  of  the  belly  of  the  land  ;  and 
down  the  sides  of  the  hills  run  many  streams  of  water 
sweet  to  drink.  And  save  in  one  place  no  reef  ran 
out  from  the  shore." 

"  That  does  not  agree  with  Carteret,"  said  Young 
to  Christian. 

"  And  the  great  ocean  rollers,"  added  Mahina,  "  for 
ever  dashed  up  against  the  face  of  the  cliffs  so  that  no 
strangers  could  land  in  their  canoes,  else  would  they 
be  broken  to  pieces  in  the  angry  surf." 

"  But  still  there  is  one  little  spot  on  the  north  and 
north-west,"  continued  the  Tubuaian  chief,  "so  small 
that  only  those  who  have  lived  in  Afita  can  find  it, 
where  the  sea  is  not  always  rough.  And  on  the 
eastern  side  there  is  a  small  bay,  where,  when  the 
wind  is  from  the  west  and  south,  the  sea  is  quiet,  and 
a  deeply-laden  canoe  can  land  with  safety." 

"  Is  the  water  deep  ?  "  asked  Christian. 

"  Aye,  so  deep  is  it,  that  five  fathoms  from  the  shore 
the  water  is  as  blue  as  the  deep  ocean  ;  and  close  to 
the  high  cliffs  swim  great  fish  that  we  in  Tubuai 
catch  only  with  lines  a  hundred  fathoms  in  length. 
Ah,  Kirisiani,  to-morrow  wilt  thou  see  if  Mahina  and 
I  have  told  thee  aught  but  the  truth." 

As  the  pleasant  tones  of  the  chief's  voice  ceased 
there  came  a  gentle  pufFof  air,  which  filled  the  ship's 
upper  canvas,  and  Christian  and  Young  sprang  to  their 
feet,  quickly  followed  by  the  natives,  and  trimmed  the 
sails  for  the  coming  breeze. 

For  three  or  four  hours  the  Bounty  slid  softly  over 
a  moonlit  sea  ;  then  as  dawn  broke  and  the  red  sun 


THE  STORY  OF  AFITA  155 

sprang  from  the  horizon,  P'lctchcr  Christian  and  his 
comrades  saw  the  island  for  which  they  had  so  long 
sought  lying  before  them  bright  and  shining  green 
upon  the  sunlit  sea. 

An  hour  later  the  ship  was  hove-to  as  close  to 
the  land  as  her  safety  permitted,  and  Christian,  in  her 
one  boat  with  Taiaro-Maina  and  some  white  seamen, 
was  searching  for  the  only  little  bay  where  it  was 
thought  a  landing  might  be  effected. 


CHAPTER    XVIII 


BOUNTY    BAY 


WITHIN  twenty  minutes  of  leaving  the  ship 
Christian  and  his  boat's  crew  were  close  under 
the  cliffs  of  the  island  ;  and  rowing  carefully,  just 
outside  the  curl  of  the  breaking  surf,  they  sought  the 
landing-place  described  by  the  Tubuaian  chief  as  being 
on  the  south  and  east  side.  As  the  strong  arms  of 
the  natives  urged  the  boat  along,  Christian  looked 
at  the  grim,  precipitous  cliffs  which  rose  sheer  from 
the  thundering  surf  at  their  base,  and  a  strange  sense 
of  loneliness  almost  akin  to  fear  came  over  him. 
The  outlines  of  the  solitary  island  were  savage,  and  the 
terror  of  its  forbidding  exterior  was  increased  by  the 
tumult  of  the  waves  which  hurled  themselves  with 
astounding  fury  against  its  grey  coral  walls.  Some- 
times, as  a  huge,  swelling  sea  swept  in  like  a  moving 
wall  towards  them,  the  natives  would  give  a  warning 
cry  ;  and  Christian,  bringing  the  boat's  head  round  to 
meet  it,  would  watch  the  mighty  volume  of  water 
fling  itself,  with  a  hoarse  roar,  high  upwards  against  the 
solid  face  of  stone,  to  fall  back  in  drenching  sheets  of 

156 


BOUNTY  BAY  157 

foam  upon  the  swirling  cauldron  which  leapt  and 
eddied  and  boiled  beneath.  Here  and  there  deep  and 
narrow  chasms  split  up  the  vertical  mass  of  rock,  and 
into  these  gaps,  many  of  them  terminating  in  caverns 
black  as  night,  the  sea  rushed  with  such  irresistible 
force  that  misty  spray  and  spume  shot  upward  over  the 
very  summits  of  the  clifFs,  like  the  belching  smoke 
from  the  crater  of  a  volcano  in  the  throes  of  a 
violent  convulsion.  Right  to  the  verge  there  drooped 
down  in  places  thick  clusters  of  a  light-green  coloured 
creeper,  whose  pendants,  turned  yellow  by  the  salty 
spray,  swayed  wildly  to  and  fro  like  banners  waved  by 
mysterious,  invisible  hands,  so  fierce  were  the  air 
blasts  caused  by  the  terrific  inrush  of  water. 

Scarcely  speaking  above  a  whisper,  the  natives 
rowed  quickly  along,  their  dark  eyes  shining  with 
pleasure  when  they  saw  the  feathery  tufts  of  coco- 
palms  showing  above  the  dense  thicket  scrub,  where 
the  cliffs  were  less  precipitous  and  revealed  a  slight 
glimpse  of  the  interior  of  the  island.  And  now,  as  the 
boat  drew  near  the  south-western  point  where  a  high, 
cathedral-like  rock  stood,  blackly-grim,  amid  the  white 
seethe  of  boiling  surge,  there  came  a  strange  wild 
clamour,  a  savage  symphony  of  crashing,  thundering 
surf  and  hoarse  guttural  croaks  and  shrill  pipings,  and 
from  every  crag  and  rock  and  jagged  pinnacle  along 
the  shore,  there  soared  aloft  a  vast  swarm  of  sea-birds, 
which  whirled  and  circled  above  the  boat  with  out- 
stretched wing  and  frightened  eye.  Then,  as  if  satisfied 
with  their  quick  scrutiny  of  the  strange  intruders,  they 
rose  higher  in  air  and  vanished  behind  the  towering  cliffs. 


158  THE  MUTINEER 

Keeping  well  clear  of  three  or  four  sharp-peaked 
rocks  which  raised  their  black  heads  from  the  water  as 
the  receding  billows  uncovered  them  to  view,  the  boat 
at  last  rounded  the  point  and  Christian  headed  her  along 
the  shore  to  the  north-west  ;  and  almost  at  the  same 
moment  Tairoa-Maina  drew  in  his  oar,  and  sprang  to 
his  feet  with  an  exultant  shout. 

"  See,  Kirisiani !  the  beach  !  the  beach  !  And  see, 
too,  the  leaping  torrent  above.  'Tis  indeed  the  land 
of  Afita." 

Christian,  himself  too  excited  to  speak,  now  gave 
his  attention  to  effecting  a  landing  ;  the  crew  took  in 
their  oars  and,  picking  up  canoe  paddles  in  their  place, 
waited  for  the  word  to  run  the  boat  ashore  during  a 
lull  in  the  surf,  which  even  on  the  sheltered  beach 
broke  heavily.  For  some  five  or  ten  minutes  they 
lay  rising  and  falling  upon  the  rollers  ;  then,  seeing 
his  opportunity,  Christian  gave  the  order,  the  natives 
plunged  their  paddles  into  the  water  with  swift,  strong 
strokes,  and  sent  the  boat  spinning  shoreward  on  the 
crest  of  a  curling  wave.  Twenty  feet  from  the  beach 
they  leapt  out,  in  another  minute  the  boat  had  touched 
the  shingle,  and  the  crew  had  hauled  it  out  of 
danger. 

Directly  in  front  of  them  was  a  winding  path,  long 
unused,  which  led  to  a  plateau  beyond  ;  Christian  and 
Tairoa  led  the  way  up  the  ascent,  and  they  quickly 
gained  the  edge.  And  then  even  Christian  could  not 
repress  a  cry  of  excited  admiration  at  the  marvellous 
beauty  of  the  scene.  Back  from  the  white  beach, 
which  like  a  strip  of  ivory  lay  below  amid  the  emerald 


BOUNTY  BAY  159 

green  of  a  belt  of  encircling  coco-palms,  there  stood 
revealed  an  amphitheatre  of  the  loveliest  verdure  and 
most  enchanting  appearance,  surrounded  on  three 
sides  by  wild  and  densely  wooded  mountains.  West- 
ward, about  a  mile  away  across  the  plateau,  a  lofty 
peak  raised  itself  high  above  its  less  conspicuous  fellows, 
whose  bold  and  romantic-looking  semicircle,  diversified 
by  noble,  jutting  crags  and  tapering  peaks,  encom- 
passed the  softer  beauties  of  the  smiling  valley. 
Scarcely  more  than  a  mile  in  width  from  east  to 
west,  the  extraordinary  fertility  and  variety  of  verdure 
was  such  that  Christian  and  his  companions  gazed 
upon  their  surroundings  with  feelings  little  short  of 
rapture.  Overhead,  the  lofty  plumes  of  the  stately 
palms  swayed  and  rustled  to  the  flower-scented 
breath  of  the  trade-wind  as  it  stirred  the  rich  green 
foliage  of  the  breadfruit  trees.  Along  the  seaward- 
facing  edge  of  the  plateau  clusters  of  pandanus  palms, 
with  their  ripe,  red  fruit,  waved  their  feathery  banners 
to  the  breeze.  Beyond  the  crowns  of  the  murmur- 
ing palms,  and  the  wide  outspreading  branches  of  the 
tamanu  and  breadfruit  and  pandanus  trees,  lay  the  blue, 
heaving  bosom  of  the  Pacific. 

For  some  little  time  they  remained  spellbound, 
drinking  in  the  beauty  of  land  and  sea  and  sky 
around  them,  and  listening  to  the  music  of  the 
mountain  torrent  as  it  wound  downward  through  its 
rocky  bed  to  the  bright  valley,  to  mingle  its  pure  waters 
with  the  ocean.  Then  with  a  sigh  of  satisfaction  the 
leader  bade  his  men  follow  him  back  to  the  boat.  A 
mile  off  he  could  see  the  'Bounty^  which  had  just  gone 


i6o  THE  MUTINEER 

about,  and  was  now  standing  in  again,  her  white 
canvas  shining  in  the  dazzling  sunlight. 

Before  launching  the  boat,  the  crew  threw  into  her 
a  hundred  or  more  of  young  drinking  coconuts, 
which  they  had  hastily  gathered  from  the  nearest 
trees,  for  the  use  of  the  women.  Then,  all  talking 
together  of  the  richness  and  fertility  of  the  island, 
they  picked  up  their  canoe  paddles  and  quickly  sent 
the  boat  in  safety  through  the  breaking  surf. 

Christian  was  soon  on  deck  and  described  the 
appearance  and  capabilities  of  the  island  to  the  fore- 
most of  his  comrades,  who  were  all  well  pleased  at  his 
account,  and  left  their  future  course  entirely  in  his 
hands.  He  was  not  long,  therefore,  in  coming  to  a 
decision. 

The  wind  was  now  from  the  south-east  and  blew 
gently  but  steadily  into  the  little  bay,  so  it  was  agreed 
that  the  ship  should  work  round  the  south-west  point 
and  be  headed  directly  for  the  beach.  The  deep  water 
which  ran  close  to  the  foot  of  the  mountains  all  round 
the  island,  except  where  a  narrow  strip  of  beach 
separated  land  and  sea,  would  enable  them  to  get 
everything  out  of  the  'Bounty  likely  in  the  future  to 
be  useful  ;  and  the  destruction  of  the  ship.  Christian 
knew,  would  prevent  his  companions  from  yielding  to 
any  sudden  impulse  and  risking  his  and  their  safety  by 
an  attempt  to  leave  the  long-sought  place  of  refuge. 

In  order  that  Young  and  Brown  (the  gardener)  might 
take  a  look  at  their  future  home,  Christian  sent  the 
boat  away  a  second  time  ;  for  the  wind  being  light  it 
would  be  some  time  before  he  could  effect  the  purpose 


BOUNTY  BAY  i6i 

he  had  in  view.  Two  hours  later,  when  she  was 
within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  southern  point  of  the 
little  bay,  the  boat  was  seen  coming  out  again,  and 
soon  gained  the  ship.  Young  was  greatly  pleased 
with  the  beauty  of  the  place,  and  reported  that  he 
had  searched  for  a  suitable  anchorage  and  had  found  a 
spot  where  the  ship  would  be  safe  enough  during  the 
continuance  of  such  calm  weather,  for  the  sea  on  that 
side  of  the  island  was  but  moderate. 

But  at  the  word  "anchorage"  Christian  shook  his 
head,  and  Young  therefore  pursued  the  subject  no 
further.  Brown,  who  had  a  considerable  knowledge 
of  botany,  said  that  he  had  found  many  plants  upon 
the  island  which  were  edible  and  would  prove  of 
value ;  and  his  and  Young's  remarks  confirmed 
Christian  and  the  others  in  their  opinion  that  the 
island  would,  when  the  ship's  stores  were  exhausted, 
yield  them  ample  provisions  in  all  respects  save  that 
of  animal  food.  The  varied  fruits  and  vegetables 
also  would  be  enough  to  support  them  till  the  ship's 
stock  of  goats,  pigs,  and  fowls  had  so  increased  that 
they  might  begin  to  kill  them  with  safety. 

The  boat  being  passed  astern.  Christian  hove  the 
ship  to,  called  all  hands  together  and  told  them  his 
intentions. 

"  I  have  decided  to  run  the  ship  ashore,  and  then 
burn  her,"  he  said. 

Without  hesitation  every  one  agreed  to  abide  by  his 
decision.  Then  the  sails  of  the  'Bounty  were  filled  for 
the  last  time,  and  in  a  few  minutes  she  was  heading 
straight  for  the  beach. 

12 


i6z  THE  MUTINEER 

Every  heart  on  board  beat  more  quickly  as  the  old 
ship  neared  the  end  of  her  life. 

Christian,  his  eyes  fixed  upon  a  small  rock  which 
marked  the  centre  of  the  little  bay,  stood  at  the  helm. 
The  act  of  severing  this  last  link  with  the  past  almost 
unnerved  him,  and  every  moment  of  the  ship's  progress 
towards  the  breakers  seemed  like  an  hour.  Whole 
years  of  time  in  the  life  that  was  now  for  ever  gone 
raced  swiftly  in  the  current  of  his  thoughts.  But  this, 
the  end  for  him  of  all  his  past,  so  lingered  in  its  fulfil- 
ment, that  time  after  time  he  was  on  the  point  of 
throwing  the  ship  aback,  saving  her  from  destruction 
before  it  was  too  late  and  giving  him,  felon  as  he  was, 
a  last  chance  to  end  his  days,  even  though  a  fugitive, 
in  a  foreign  land  ;  or  he  could  return  to  England,  and 
then — a  disgraceful  death.  With  the  means  of  escape 
cut  off  perpetual  exile  faced  him,  and  disseverance 
from  all  which  was  once  dear. 

A  slight  touch  upon  his  arm,  and  Mahina  stood 
looking  into  his  face  and  reading  his  mind  as  clearly 
as  if  he  had  spoken  aloud.  With  the  gentle  pressure 
of  her  hand,  the  look  of  unutterable  love  from  the 
dark,  tender  eyes,  his  indecision  was  gone. 

"  Mahina,"  he  said,  "  thou  art  right  ;  I  was  waver- 
ing. To  all  men  this  moment  comes  sometimes  in 
their  lives,  and  they  often  decide  wrongly ;  but 
between  thee  and  what  lieth  beyond  I  should  indeed 
be  a  fool  to  hesitate. 

Her  lips  quivered  ;  bending  her  head  over  the  wheel 
she  kissed  his  hand,  and  her  warm  tears  of  silent  sym- 
pathy nerved  him  anew. 


BOUNTY  BAY  163 

A  few  seconds  more,  and  with  a  voice  as  firm  as 
though  he  were  about  to  anchor  the  ship,  Christian 
gave  the  word  to  let  go  the  halliards  and  sheets,  and, 
while  the  hissing  of  the  boiling  surf  breaking  across 
the  entrance  of  the  bay  drowned  the  rattle  of  blocks 
and  the  flapping  of  canvas,  the  'Bounty  ploughed 
through  the  seas  towards  the  shore.  Wave  after  wave 
swept  roaring  past  her  on  either  side,  their  snowy 
summits  running  level  with  the  tops  of  her  bulwarks  ; 
with  slowness  tormenting  to  her  expectant  crew,  she 
gradually  lost  her  way,  struck  the  beach  gently,  ground 
a  few  feet  of  furrow  in  the  glistening  pebbles  and 
sand,  and  then  settled  into  her  last  resting-place  with 
scarcely  a  quiver  of  her  timbers. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

HEWERS    OF    WOOD    AND    DRAWERS    OF    WATER 

WITH  shouts  of  joy  the  Tahitians  and 
Tubuaians,  men  and  women  alike,  clambered 
from  the  bows  of  the  ship  to  the  beach  ;  the  white 
men  caught  their  enthusiasm,  and  they  too,  all  but 
Christian,  who  remained  with  Mahina,  jumped  ashore, 
and  for  a  while  everything  was  forgotten  but  the  one 
delightful  truth  that  the  weary  quest  for  a  resting- 
place  was  ended  at  last. 

Christian,  however,  soon  recalled  them  to  the  need 
for  work.  Before  abandoning  their  old  home  it  was 
necessary  to  build  a  new  one.  So  the  ship  was  made 
as  secure  as  possible  where  she  lay,  and  while  the 
white  men  went  to  work  to  dismantle  her,  the  brown 
people,  with  Christian  and  Mahina,  set  about  selecting 
a  site  for  their  dwellings. 

For  the  first  few  days  after  landing  they  lived  in 
tents  and  such  rough  shelters  as  could  be  built  with 
canvas  and  planks  from  the  ship,  and  during  this  time 
a  survey  was  made  of  the  island.  It  was  then  by 
mutual  consent  divided  into  nine  parts — one  portion 

164 


HEWERS  OF  WOOD  165 

to  each  Englishman.  As  for  the  islanders,  none  of 
the  white  men,  except  Christian  and  Smith,  seemed 
to  think  of  them  as  having  equal  shares  and  rights  in 
the  undertaking ;  even  Mahina  seemed  surprised  that 
her  husband  should  regard  them  as  anything  but 
servants  and  tillers  of  the  soil.  Finding  that  all  the 
other  seamen  except  Smith  w^ere  determined  against 
giving  their  brown  associates  any  land  whatever. 
Christian,  after  a  few  words  of  expostulation,  withdrew 
all  further  opposition  and  let  matters  take  their 
course,  and  the  Tahitians  and  Tubuaians  began  to 
build  houses  and  prepare  land  for  planting. 

But  just  as  axes  and  hoes  had  been  served  out  to 
the  natives  by  McCoy  and  Young,  and  while  the 
rest  of  Christian's  comrades  were  present,  the  Tubuaian 
chief  stepped  out  from  among  the  natives,  and  fixing 
his  eyes  on  the  man  Williams,  who  had  especially 
resented  the  idea  that  land  should  be  given  them, 
he  addressed  Christian.  He  spoke  very  slowly  and 
clearly,  and  even  those  of  the  mutineers  whose  know- 
ledge of  the  Tubuaian  language  was  limited,  could 
grasp  the  meaning  of  his  words. 

"  I,  Tairoa-Maina,  am  a  chief.  In  my  own  land 
of  Tubuai,  for  me,  a  warrior  and  a  man  of  good  blood, 
to  labour  for  others  would  be  shameful  and  degrading. 
But  I  and  Talalu,  who  is  my  friend,  and  of  as  good 
blood  as  myself,  have  no  thoughts  such  as  this  now  ; 
our  hearts  are  eaten  up  with  love  for  Kirisiani  and 
his  wife  Mahina,  and  for  they  alone  do  I  and 
Talalu  go  forth  to  labour  like  slaves.  Like  myself, 
Kirisiani  is  a  chief  in  his  own  land,  that  I  well  know. 


i66  THE  MUTINEER 

And  I  know,  oh  men  of  Peretane,  that  there  are  some 
among  you  who  have  evil  in  your  hearts." 

"  Cease,  cease,  my  brother,"  said  Mahina,  taking 
the  chief's  hand.  "  Well  do  my  husband  and  myself 
know^  that  thou  and  Talalu  are  indeed  friends  to  us  ; 
but,  I  pray  thee,  make  no  bad  blood  between  him  and 
the  other  white  men." 

"You've  always  had  too  much  to  say,"  said 
Williams,  advancing  to  Tairoa  savagely  with  his  hand 
upon  his  knife.  Christian  sprang  upon  him  and 
gripped  him  by  the  wrist. 

"Stand  back,  Williams.  Raise  your  hand  to  that 
man  and  I'll  choke  you.  Do  you  want  to  begin 
our  new  life  by  bloodshed  ?  Listen  to  me,  and 
weigh  well  my  words.  I  have  long  seen  how  you 
have  tried  to  harass  and  thwart  me  in  my  endeavours 
for  our  common  good  ;  of  that  which  is  passed  I 
will  think  no  more  ;  but,  by  the  living  God,  do  not 
attempt  it  again  !  And  do  not  seek  to  injure  this  man 
Tairoa-Maina,  who  has  been  a  good  friend  to  us  all, 
and  should  in  common  justice  have  equal  rights  with 
ourselves." 

With  a  look  of  bitter  hatred,  Williams  sullenly 
turned  away,  and  calling  his  wife  Faito  to  follow  him, 
left  the  others  and  took  no  further  part  in  their  dis- 
cussions. 

During  the  following  week  the  'Bounty  was  stripped 
of  everything  below  and  aloft,  inside  and  outside  ; 
even  her  planks  were  removed  from  her  sides,  and  the 
copper,  nails,  bolts,  and  such  useful  articles  carefully 
stored  on  shore,  and  nothing  of  her  being  left  out  of  I 


HEWERS    OF  WOOD  167 

the  water  but  the  frame,  she  was  set  on  fire.  What 
remained  of  her  charred  hull  was  floated  and  sunk  in 
the  bay,  which  from  that  day  the  white  men 
called  Bounty  Bay,  and  the  Tubuaians  Te  Moega  te 
Pahi — the  resting-place  of  the  ship. 

Although  Christian  relinquished  the  command  of 
his  fellow  adventurers  as  soon  as  they  had  landed,  he 
was  still  tacitly  recognised  as  their  leader,  and  his 
advice  sought  and  taken  upon  many  matters.  For 
some  days  the  people  lived  in  tents,  and  all,  brown  and 
white  alike,  worked  at  clearing  the  nine  portions  of 
land,  and  building  thereon  houses,  the  roofs  of  which 
were  skilfully  and  quickly  thatched  by  the  women. 
For  this  they  used  the  stiff  leaves  of  the  pandanus  or 
screw-palm,  which  grew  on  the  island  in  profusion, 
and  yielded,  in  addition  to  its  strong,  useful  timber 
and  leaves,  quantities  of  rich  yellow  fruit. 

Mahina,  always  a  favourite  with  the  Tahitians,  had 
now  gained  very  great  influence  over  them  all,  and 
Alrema,  who  was  possessed  of  undaunted  courage  and 
iron  resolution,  was  equally  well-liked,  and  was  a 
fitting  mate  for  her  husband,  who,  reckless  as  he  was 
by  nature,  ifelt  and  yielded  to  the  influence  of  his 
young  and  beautiful  wife,  whose  easy  manners  and 
soft  ways  veiled,  as  he  knew,  a  capacity  for  heroic 
deeds  where  her  love  for  him  was  concerned  or  her 
jealousy  or  hatred  was  aroused.  Unknown  to  Chris- 
tian she  had  been,  from  the  very  day  of  their  return  to 
Tahiti,  a  silent  force  working  both  in  his  and  her 
husband's  interests  to  maintain  their  supremacy  over 
the    rest   of  the  white    men.     Nothing   escaped  her 


i68  THE  MUTINEER 

keen  observation ;  danger  to  Christian,  she  knew, 
meant  danger  to  Young,  and  she  was  quick  to  note 
and  take  heed  of  the  slightest  murmuring  of  dis- 
affection, and  to  nullify  it  by  inducing  Christian, 
either  through  Mahina  or  Young,  to  make  some 
concession. 

Of  Quintal  and  Williams  she  was  especially  dis- 
trustful. The  former,  once  an  ardent  supporter  of 
Christian,  had  of  late  begun  to  associate  much  with 
Williams,  who  was  of  a  dangerous  and  savage  dis- 
position. Faito,  his  wife,  was  a  tender,  delicate  girl, 
scarcely  more  than  fifteen  years  of  age  ;  but  at  a 
period  when  even  the  roughest  and  coarsest  of  men 
might  have  been  expected  to  have  shown  her  some 
tenderness  and  consideration,  she  received  nothing  but 
curses  for  her  weakness  and  incapacity  to  attend  fully 
to  his  wants. 

"  Perhaps,"  she  one  day  said  weepingly  to  Alrema 
and  Mahina,  as  the  three  were  plaiting  thatch  for  the 
roof  of  a  house,  "  perhaps  he  will  again  be  the  same  to 
me  when  my  child  is  born  and  I  become  strong  again. 
But  to-day  he  cursed  me  because,  being  wearied,  I  lay 
down  for  a  little  while,  and  he  said  that  he  was  a  fool 
to  take  such  a  weak  thing  as  I  to  wife." 

Alrema's  eye  flashed  and  her  white  teeth  showed 
through  her  parted  lips.  "  Aye,  I  heard  the  dog — and 
I  heard  more  ;  what  said  he  of  Malama,  the  wife  of 
Kawintali  (Quintal)  ?  " 

Faito  covered  her  face  with  her  hands  ;  in  an  instant 
Mahina's  arms  were  round  her  waist  and  her  head 
pillowed  upon  Mahina's  bosom. 


HEWERS  OF  WOOD  169 

"  Nay,  heed  him  not,  Faito  ;  Malama  fears  him, 
and  never  wilt  thou  be  wronged  by  her." 

The  sifl  tried  to  smile  throuo-h  her  tears.  "  It 
may  be  so  ;  but  to-day  he  said  that  'twas  Malama  who 
should  have  been  wife  to  him,  for  she  is  well  and 
strong." 

"  Not  so  strong  but  that  my  knife  shall  eat  into  her 
heart  if  she  comes  between  thy  husband  and  thee," 
said  Alrema  fiercely.  "  Her  husband  is  but  a  dull 
head  where  women  are  concerned  ;  but  thy  husband 
is  as  cunning  as  a  rat.  And  I  know  that  they  both 
are  evilly  disposed  to  Kirisiani  and  to  my  husband  ; 
they  say  this  land  of  Afita  is  too  small  for  so  many. 
By  and  by  they  shall  have  but  a  very  small  piece — 
so  small  indeed  that  a  child  may  step  across  it." 

With  these  ominous  words  Alrema  went  away  ;  and 
so  began  to  germinate  the  seeds  of  discontent  and  dis- 
trust, which  later  ripened  to  a  deadly  feud. 

But  for  some  little  time  matters  went  on  well  enough  ; 
even  those  who  were  secretly  resentful  of  Christian's 
influence  over  their  brown-skinned  associates  yet 
worked  willingly  enough  for  the  common  good,  and 
performed  the  daily  task  allotted  to  them  without 
murmuring. 

Within  three  weeks,  nine  houses — one  for  each  of 
the  mutineers — were  completed,  and  Christian  one 
day  announced  that  the  next  joint  work  would  be 
to  provide  four  similar  dwellings,  three  for  the 
Tahitians  and  their  wives,  and  one  for  the  three 
Tubuaians — who,  being  single  men,  would  live  to- 
gether. 


170  THE  MUTINEER 

For  some  moments  no  one  spoke — then  Williams, 
who  was  sitting  beside  Quintal  upon  the  bole  of  a 
large  toa  tree  which  had  been  felled  for  house- 
building, laid  down  his  pipe,  stood  up,  and  confronted 
Christian. 

"You  don't  expect  us  to  build  houses  for  these 
natives,  do  you,  Mr.  Christian  ? "  he  said,  and  Alrema, 
who  stood  near,  noted  the  glance  that  passed  between 
him  and  Quintal. 

"  Why  should  we  not  ?  Are  not  these  people  as 
good  as  ourselves  ?  Have  they  not  done  thrice  as 
much  as  we  have  in  building  our  own  dwellings  ?  " 

He  spoke  quietly,  but  there  was  a  dangerous  tone  in 
his  voice,  and  Young,  Mahina,  and  Alrema,  who 
knew  now  his  slightest  mood,  looked  with  anxiety  for 
what  was  to  follow. 

"  I,  for  one,  will  be  damned  if  I  work  for 
savages,"  said  Quintal,  rising  and  standing  beside 
Williams. 

"  We  didn't  come  here  to  work,  Mr.  Christian," 
joined  in  Mills,  the  gunner's  mate,  gloomily  ;  "  I 
think  these  fellows  ought  to  work  for  us,  and  not  we 
for  them." 

"  You  are  all  pretty  much  of  this  opinion  ?  "  asked 
Christian  slowly,  with  an  inquiring  glance,  and  in  a 
savagely  contemptuous  tone  of  voice. 

A  quick  and  angry  murmur  of  assent  came  from 
all  but  Young  and  Smith,  who  quietly  walked  apart 
from  the  others  and  stood  beside  Christian. 

Then  Smith,  after  a  whispered  word  with  Alrema 
and  his  own  wife,  Terere,  stepped  out  in  front. 


HEWERS  OF  WOOD  171 

"I,  for  one,  sir,  will  lend  a  hand  right  willingly. 
Give  your  orders,  Mr.  Christian,  and  I'll  obey  them." 

This  brought  no  remark  from  the  rest,  and  Young 
drawing  his  comrade  aside,  said  quietly,  "  My  dear 
Christian,  what  is  the  use  of  sneering  at  the  men  in 
this  fashion.  It  is  scarcely  likely  that  British  seamen 
— damned  lazy  dogs  they  are,  too — could  be  induced 
to  work  side  by  side  with  island  savages  ;  and  your 
manner  of  asking  them  invited  their  refusal." 

Pushing  aside  Young's  restraining  hand,  Fletcher 
Christian  turned  to  the  group  of  seamen,  and,  with 
flashing  eyes  and  voice  trembling  with  rage  and  con- 
tempt, said — 

"  Have  your  own  way  ;  I  have  done  with  the 
lot  of  you,  and  am  glad  to  be  clear  of  you.  For 
your  own  sakes  I  have,  so  far,  kept  control.  If  I 
led  you  into  mutiny  I  stood  by  you  and  brought 
you  to  a  place  of  safety.  I  can  die  or  live  here 
— I  care  nothing  which  way  it  is.  But  understand 
this  :  I  will  be  no  party  to  making  slaves  of  men 
whom  I  look  upon  as  equal  to  myself — and  supe- 
rior to  such  damned  soldiers  as  you.  Go  to  hell, 
the  whole  lot  of  you,  in  your  own  way  !  "  Then  he 
walked  rapidly  away,  followed  by  the  trembling 
Mahina,  and  the  unmoved,  undaunted  Alrema. 

As  soon  as  he  had  disappeared  among  the  palm- 
groves,  Talalu,  who  understood  enough  English  to 
comprehend  the  nature  of  the  discussion  that  had 
taken  place,  turned  to  Young,  and  said  in  Tahitian — 

"  Do  not  quarrel  about  this  matter,  Etuati.  There 
are    plenty   of  us   to   build    houses.     Our  hands  are 


172  THE  MUTINEER 

strong  and  our  hearts  are  not  made  sore  because 
these  our  friends  think  we  alone  should  work  on 
Afita.  Come,  my  countrymen,  let  us  to  work. 
Never  must  angry  words  come  between  us  and  the 
white  men." 

A  cheerful  assent  was  the  response  ;  the  natives 
shouldered  their  axes  and,  followed  by  Tairoa  and 
the  others,  walked  ofF  in  single  file  towards  a  clump 
of  toa  trees. 

"  Why,  damn  it  all,"  said  Mills,  with  a  coarse 
laugh,  "  those  fellows  have  more  sense  than  Christian  ! 
They  know  well  enough  that  we  ain't  the  sort  to 
work  for  them.     Why,  it's  agin'  nature." 

For  a  few  days  after  this  nothing  occurred  to  widen 
the  breach.  The  Tahitians  worked  with  a  will, 
lightening  their  labours  with  many  a  song  and  merry 
jest  ;  for  they  were  by  nature  an  amiable  and  kindly- 
hearted  people,  full  to  overflowing  of  the  most  gene- 
rous instincts  and  noble  impulses,  and  their  devotion 
to  Christian  and  his  beautiful  wife  was  sufficient 
reason  for  them  to  toil  unrepiningly  for  the  rest  of  the 
white  men  ;  to  their  simple  minds,  those  who  sought 
to  oppress  them  were  of  Christian's  race  and,  as  such, 
had  a  claim  upon  them.  But  underneath  all  their 
present  content  there  was  yet  a  hidden  current  of  dis- 
satisfaction which  only  the  quick  mind  of  Alrema  had 
fathomed,  and  she  was  a  woman  who  meant  to  make 
use  of  it  when  the  time  came.  So,  while  the  white 
seamen  lay  in  their  houses  and  ate  and  drank  and  were 
waited  upon  by  their  obedient  Tahitian  wives,  the 
brown   men   let  the   white  slowly  but  surely  assume 


HEWERS  OF  WOOD  173 

the  rights  of  masters  over  them,  and  uncomplainingly 
became  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water. 

At  night  when  the  fires  were  blazing  and  the 
rude  lamps  brought  from  the  ship  were  lighted,  the 
islanders  would  assemble  in  front  of  the  white  men's 
houses  ;  and  with  the  wives  of  the  mutineers  (except 
Alrema  and  Mahina)  sing  old  Tahitian  songs  such  as 
the  bounty's  people  had  heard  in  the  days  when  their 
ship  floated  on  the  placid  waters  of  Matavai  Bay. 
Sometimes,  when  the  sea  was  smooth,  men  and  women 
together  would  go  down  to  the  ledges  of  the  cliffs 
and  fish  in  the  deep  waters  at  their  base,  returning 
home  laden  with  many  a  weighty  basket.  Tairoa- 
Maina  and  his  two  countrymen  had  already  made  a 
canoe,  and  the  marvellous  ingenuity  with  which  it 
was  constructed  with  such  rough  tools — for  they  had 
but  axes  and  knives  and  a  few  chisels—  aroused  the 
admiration  even  of  the  lazy  Englishmen.  The  houses 
of  the  white  men,  too,  were  monuments  of  the  untiring 
patience  and  skill  of  the  Tahitians.  Built  of  the 
timber  of  breadfruit  and  toa^  and  thatched  beautifully 
with  the  russet-coloured  leaves  of  the  pandanus  palm, 
oblong  in  shape,  they  bore  an  almost  exact  resem- 
blance, inside  and  out,  to  the  dwellings  in  Tahiti 
and  Tubuai.  Their  furniture  was  nearly  all  of  native 
pattern,  and  consisted  in  each  house  of  the  owner's 
share  of  the  spoils  from  the  ^ounty^  with  rough 
wooden  stools  and  benches  made  from  the  wood  of 
the  breadfruit,  toa  or  tamanu  tree.  The  floors  were 
first  of  all  laid  out  with  about  a  foot  of  smooth,  sea- 
worn  pebbles,  brought  by  the  women  in  baskets  from 


174  THE  MUTINEER 

the  little  beach  where  the  ship  was  run  ashore,  and 
then  covered  over  with  coarse  mats  of  coconut  leaf. 
Over  this  was  spread  finer  matting  made  from  the 
pandanus  leaf,  and  over  this  again  squares  of  canvas 
cut  from  the  bounty's  sails.  Upon  this  a  thick  layer 
of  still  finer  mats,  brought  from  Tahiti,  was  placed, 
and  this  formed  the  beds  of  the  occupants. 

The  long  months  spent  at  sea  upon  the  ship  had 
greatly  changed  the  habits  and  customs  of  the  Tahi- 
tians,  until  in  some  things  there  was  but  little  differ- 
ence between  them  and  their  white  associates — or 
rather  masters.  But  now  that  they  were  both  once 
more  on  land  the  Englishmen  were  glad  to  adopt,  in 
their  turn,  many  of  the  ways  of  the  natives,  and  so 
the  two  races  gradually  acquired  from  each  other  such 
new  habits  and  modes  of  life  as  were  best  suited  to 
their  altered  state. 

To  their  white  husbands  the  Tahitian  women  were 
always  considerate  and  dutiful  ;  they  ministered  to 
the  men's  wants  so  skilfully  that  the  rough  sailors 
found  their  days  slip  by  in  the  greatest  ease  and  com- 
fort, and  had  some  sort  of  selfish  affection  for  their 
wives.  It  was  contrary  to  the  custom  of  Tahiti  for 
the  women  to  eat  with  the  men,  or  even  to  drink  out 
of  the  same  utensils  as  their  husbands,  or  partake  of 
food  which  had  been  either  handled  or  prepared  by 
the  superior  sex;  and  in  this  respect  the  laws  of 
custom  proved  too  strong  to  be  broken,  even  though 
their  husbands  good-humouredly  urged  them  to  do  so, 
they  were  quite  content  to  wait  upon  their  lords  and 
masters    and    eat    by    themselves    afterwards.      But 


HEWERS  OF  WOOD  175 

Christian,  Young,  and  Smith,  who  regarded  their 
wives  as  something  better  than  mere  chattels  or 
objects  of  selfish  passion,  tried  hard  to  combat  this 
custom,  and  in  some  degree  succeeded  ;  so  that 
Mahina,  Alrema,  and  Terere  all  abandoned  the 
Tahitian  habit  of  one  regular  meal  on  rising,  and 
taking  food  and  drink  at  infrequent  intervals  during 
the  remainder  of  the  day,  and  prepared  and  ate  meals 
in  the  English  fashion. 

Although  no  longer  on  more  than  terms  of  ordi- 
nary civility  with  the  rest  of  the  white  men,  other 
than  Young  and  Smith,  Christian  would  come  in  the 
evenings  sometimes  from  his  house  to  exchange  a  few 
words  with  them  as  they  sat  outside  upon  the  grassy 
sward  before  their  dwellings  listening  to  the  Tahitians 
as  they  sang  and  chanted  or  played  music  upon  their 
reed  vivos.^  When  they  were  tired  of  singing,  the 
happy  monotony  of  the  long  nights  would  be  relieved 
by  the  brown  women,  who,  like  all  Polynesians,  were 
born  story-tellers,  with  tales  of  their  early  childhood, 
the  old  traditions  and  legends  of  their  island  homes, 
and  about  the  marvellous  origin  and  great  deeds  of 
their  ancestors.  Fabulous  and  absurd  as  was  much 
even  of  their  history — for  it  was  so  interwoven  with 
their  wild  mythology  that  the  seamen  merely  heard 
it  with  a  good-natured  smile  of  contempt — there  was 
yet  enough  of  truth  in  it  to  interest  Christian  and 
Young  ;  and  their  attention  pleased  the  wives  of  the 
seamen  greatly,  and  indeed  helped  to  sow  the  seeds 
of  indifference  towards  their  husbands,  who  they  now 

'  Flutes  of  three  notes. 


176  THE  MUTINEER 

began  to  perceive  were  men  in  intelligence  far  below 
the  one-time  officers  of  the  bounty. 

But  even  the  rough  seamen  could  not  fail  to  be 
amused  at  some  of  the  early  Tahitian  notions  of 
England.  For  instance,  they  had  somehow  acquired 
the  idea — perhaps  from  travellers'  tales  of  early 
voyages — that  England  was  once  a  large  island,  the 
centre  of  which  was  made  of  iron  ;  but  continuous 
wars  with  other  nations  had  resulted  in  all  the  outside 
soil  being  shot  away  with  cannon  balls  till  there  was 
nothing  left  but  a  solid  mass  of  iron.  It  was  also 
believed  that  there  were  ships  in  England  forty  leagues 
long  with  masts  so  high  that  they  pierced  beyond  the 
clouds,  and  that  a  young  man  in  full  health  and 
strength  going  to  the  masthead  grew  grey  before  he 
reached  the  deck  again  ;  while  on  the  great  round 
tops  of  the  lower  masts  were  rich  gardens  of  fruit, 
in  which  men  lived. 

Another  story  told  how  the  captain  of  an  English 
ship  of  war,  which  carried  so  many  cannons  that  it 
took  one  man  a  year  to  count  them,  was  incensed  at 
the  conduct  of  the  people  of  a  certain  island  ;  so  that 
hooking  one  of  the  ship's  anchors  to  a  mountain,  he 
set  sail,  tore  the  island  from  its  foundations,  and 
towed  it  away  to  the  region  of  cold,  where  the  people 
perished.  But  although  these  tales  were  believed  by 
their  narrators,  they  would  not  accept  the  white  men's 
stories  of  stone  houses  many  feet  high  and  of  rivers 
crossed  by  bridges  of  stone  with  no  support  under- 
neath. 

As  time  wore  on,  some  of  the  women  began  to 


HEWERS  OF  WOOD  177 

adopt  the  semi-European  style  of  clothing  ;  and  this 
while  it  did  not  become  them  so  well  as  their  own 
native  dress,  yet  pleased  their  husbands  and  showed 
the  women's  desire  to  render  themselves  attractive  in 
the  white  men's  eyes. 


13 


i 


CHAPTER  XX 

mahina's  first-born 


GLOOMY  and  melancholy  as  ever,  since  the  day 
of  the  mutiny  Christian  had  gradually  allowed 
his  bitter  thoughts  so  utterly  to  overcome  hun  that 
even   towards  Mahina  he  showed  cruel  mdifFerence. 
For  days  a  word  would  not  escape  his  lips,  save  when 
his  wife  put  some  direct  question  to  him  concernmg 
his  movements  or  intentions;    and  both  Young  and 
Smith,  attached  to  him  as  they  were,  now  ceased  their 
evening  visits  entirely.      Sometimes,  when  the  fires 
were  lit  after  sunset,  Mahina-her  dark   eyes  filled 
with  tears-would  watch  her  husband  go  to  the  door 
of  their  little  dwelling,  stand  there  for  a  minute  or  two 
lost  in  thought,  and  walk  silently  away  along  the  edge 
of  the  cliffs.  Often  when  she  would  have  accompamed 
him  he  quietly,  but  yet  firmly,  pushed  her  hand  aside, 
and  with  an  impatient  exclamation  quickened  his  steps 
so  as  to  be  away  from  her  the  sooner.    Hour  after  hour 
would  pass  while  Mahina,  weeping  softly  to  herselt,  sat 
outside  awaiting  her  husband's  return.     Sometimes  her 
solitude    would    be    broken   by   the   gigantic  Talalu, 


MAHINA'S  FIRST-BORN  179 

whose  dog-like  devotion  to  Christian  led  him  to 
leave  his  own  house  and  join  her  in  her  saddened 
watch. 

Early  one  morning  Mahina,  accompanied  by  Alrema 
and  Talalu,  set  out  for  a  day's  ramble  in  the  wild, 
mountainous  interior  of  the  island  ;  Christian,  scarcely 
noting  her  absence,  left  the  house  a  few  hours  later  for 
his  solitary  haunts  on  the  high  cliffs.  About  sunset  he 
returned,  and  the  moment  his  figure  appeared  over  the 
ridge  behind  which  the  little  house  was  situated, 
Mahina  ran  to  meet  him  with  outstretched  hands,  her 
face  radiant  with  childish  joy.  Placing  her  hand  on 
her  husband's  arm  she  told  him  in  excited  tones  that 
she  and  Talalu  had  found  traces  of  her  ancestors  in 
many  places  on  the  southern  portion  of  the  island. 

Flinging  down  his  musket,  Christian  seated  himself 
on  the  low,  rough  seat  erected  by  the  side  of  his 
dwelling,  and  for  some  moments  seemed  quite 
oblivious  of  Mahina's  presence.  At  last,  however, 
in  answer  to  her  continued  exclamations  of  delight, 
he  replied  bitterly — 

"  Trouble  me  not  with  such  things,  Mahina.  What 
care  I  who  lived  here  in  the  past  ?  The  misery  of 
living  in  the  present  is  enough  for  me,"  and  so 
saying  he  buried  his  face  in  his  hands. 

The  savage  energy  in  his  voice  made  her  tremble  at 
first,  but  the  indifferent  manner  in  which  he  treated 
the  news  of  her  discovery  touched  her  to  the  quick, 
and  she  blazed  out  in  hot  anger — 

"  Thou  cruel  Kirisiani  !  What  have  we  who  love 
thee  done   that   thou  shouldst   cease   to  care  for  us  ? 


i8o  THE  MUTINEER 

What  have  I,  thy  wife,  done  that  thou  shouldst  so 
answer  when  I  speak  to  thee  ?  Were  I  a  slave  thou 
couldst  not  insult  me  more  than  thou  hast  done." 

Christian  merely  shrugged  his  shoulders,  rose  and 
walked  back  towards  the  cliffs,  although  food  had  been 
prepared  for  him  by  his  disheartened  wife. 

Brushing  away  the  tears  that  would  still  come, 
Mahina  entered  the  silent  house,  put  out  the  lamp, 
and  seated  herself  before  the  dimly-burning  fire, 
wondering  what  it  was  that  had  so  changed  her 
husband's  manner  towards  her  and,  indeed,  to  every 
one  else.  That  he  was  engaged  in  working  alone  on 
one  of  the  highest  spots  on  the  island  she  knew,  for  he 
had  taken  tools  with  him  from  time  to  time  ;  but 
where  the  spot  was  and  what  was  the  nature  of  his 
toil  she  could  not  even  guess.  He  had  sternly  forbidden 
her  to  follow  him,  and  even  Talalu  dared  not  attempt 
to  discover  his  retreat. 

So  for  many  days  Talalu  and  Mahina  contented 
themselves  with  talking  over  their  discoveries  with 
Tairoa-Maina,  who  himself  a  descendant  of  the  now 
extinct  people  of  Afita,  of  course  took  a  keen  interest 
in  all  that  related  to  his  ancestors. 

Taking  some  food  with  them,  the  three  one  day  set 
out  to  make  further  explorations.  On  the  eastern  side 
of  the  island  some  rocks  were  discovered  among  a 
dense,  scrubby  thicket,  through  which  they  had  to  cut 
their  way  with  seamen's  cutlasses  brought  for  the 
purpose ;  on  the  faces  of  these  rocks  were  rude 
drawings  of  birds,  fishes,  turtle,  and  of  the  sun, 
moon  and  stars,  besides  what  Tairoa-Maina  said  was 


MAHINA'S  FIRST-BORN  i8i 

a  chart  of  the  islands  in  the  surrounding  ocean,  show- 
ing the  track  to  be  taken  by  a  canoe  in  voyaging 
among  them.  At  another  spot,  not  far  from  the  high 
cathedral-shaped  rock  on  the  south-east  point,  they 
found  in  a  cave  numbers  of  stone  spear  and  arrow- 
heads. Many  of  these  were  unused  implements,  and 
the  cave  in  which  they  were  found  had  evidently  been 
a  storehouse  for  food  as  well  as  an  armoury  ;  for  in  its 
earthen  floor  were  a  number  of  pits  which  had  once 
been  silos  for  the  storage  of  breadfruit,  yams,  and  other 
food.  Almost  in  the  centre  of  the  island,  Tairoa  one 
day  came  across  the  very  burial-places  of  his  and 
Mahina's  forefathers.  Round  this  cemetery  were 
a  number  of  rude  images  of  human  figures,  and  huge 
squared  blocks  of  stone  lay  about  in  profusion. 

At  evening  they  returned  home,  full  of  the  im- 
portant discoveries  they  had  made,  and  would  again 
have  spoken  to  Christian  on  the  subject,  but  that  his 
distant  manner  forbade  them. 

As  the  days  passed  this  moroseness  so  grew  upon 
him  that  there  was  little  doubt  his  mind  had  become 
diseased,  and  about  a  week  after  Mahina's  discoveries 
in  the  mountains  he  began  to  absent  himself  from  her 
for  two  or  three  days  together. 

Unknown  even  to  his  tender  and  devoted  wife, 
he  had  furnished  a  roomy  cave  situated  in  a  mountain 
recess  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  island.  It  was  his 
intention,  he  afterwards  told  Mahina,  to  hide  in  this 
cavern  should  a  ship  of  war  by  any  chance  arrive.  He 
had  stocked  it  with  provisions  and  water,  and  arms  and 
ammunition,  so  that  he  might  defend  himself  to  the 


i82  THE  MUTINEER 

last  in  case  of  discovery,  for  he  swore  that  he  would 
never  be  taken  alive. 

The  completion  of  his  hiding-place  seemed  to  please 
him  somewhat,  and  he  now  at  times  was  more  sociable 
with  the  other  white  men  when  by  chance  he  passed 
their  dwellings  or  met  any  of  them  in  his  lonely 
walks  ;  and  sometimes,  to  their  great  joy,  he  would 
join  Talalu  and  the  other  natives  in  a  fishing  excursion. 
Then,  as  she  saw  him  ascending  the  cliffs  towards  their 
home,  Mahina's  face  would  brighten,  and  she  and  her 
girl  friends  would  eagerly  welcome  him,  and  instantly 
prepare  to  cook  the  fish  he  brought. 

For  some  little  time  matters  went  on  without 
change  in  Christian's  home  till  towards  the  close  of 
the  year  an  event  occurred  which  temporarily  roused 
him  from  his  lethargy.  This  was  the  birth  of  his  first 
child — a  boy. 

To  Mahina's  great  happiness,  her  husband  consented 
that  the  customs  of  her  race  should  be  observed,  and  at 
her  request  he  went  away  to  his  cave  to  remain  there 
till  the  child  was  born. 

In  the  meantime,  under  the  direction  of  Quintal's 
wife,  the  oldest  Tahitian  woman  present,  the  others 
prepared  in  the  centre  of  the  great  room  a  sort  of 
bower  of  leaves  and  fine  matting.  Upon  its  floor  was 
placed  a  heap  of  heated  stones,  which  were  constantly 
replaced  by  others  as  they  cooled.  Upon  the  stones 
were  thrown  great  bunches  of  such  sweet-smelling 
herbs  and  flowers  as  the  island  afforded,  and  these  were 
from  time  to  time  sprinkled  with  water,  so  that  the 
house  was  kept  filled  with  the  perfume  of  the  herbs. 


MAHINA'S  FIRST-BORN  183 

In  this  bower  Mahina  remained  till  the  birth  of  her 
infant ;  and  then  Christian  was  waited  upon  by  the 
other  women  and  asked  what  amua  (gifts)  he  had 
ready  for  the  child. 

Having  been  previously  instructed  by  Quintal's 
wife,  he  replied — 

"This  is  all  that  I,  Kirisiani  of  Peretane,  have  for 
mine  and  Mahina's  infant,  for  it  is  all  that  this  land  of 
Afita  yields,"  and  he  placed  in  their  hands  small  quan- 
tities of  breadfruit,  taroy  and  such  other  fruits  as  grew 
on  Pitcairn.  This  was  all  that  was  expected  of  him, 
and  file  women  went  away  pleased  that  he  had  allowed 
them  to  follow  their  native  customs  so  far.  In  Tahiti 
it  was  the  practice  for  a  woman  to  live  some  weeks 
with  her  new-born  infant  in  the  sacred  grounds  of  the 
maraes  or  temples  of  Oro  and  Tane,  in  order  that 
the  favour  of  the  gods  might  be  assured  for  the  child's 
future.  But  under  the  influence  of  their  white  hus- 
bands the  women  of  Pitcairn  had  abandoned  much  of 
their  religious  ceremonies,  and  so  this  one  was  not 
observed  by  Mahina,  on  the  plea  that,  although  they 
had  found  a  marae  on  the  island,  there  was  nothing  to 
show  that  it  had  been  built  by  worshippers  of  Oro  and 
Tane,  but  really  because  she  knew  that  Christian 
disliked  her  clinging  to  Tahitian  customs. 

After  Christian  had  presented  his  gifts,  he  was 
followed  by  all  the  others,  each  person  bringing  an 
amua  either  of  food,  live  stock,  clothing  or  matting. 
These  were  deposited  at  the  mother's  feet,  and  the 
ceremonies  were  concluded. 

To  Mahina's  delight  Christian  remained  constantly 


i84  THE  MUTINEER 

with  her  for  some  weeks  after  this  event  ;  his  manner 
to  her  and  the  infant  was  gentle  and  kind,  and  she  now 
began  to  hope  that  her  husband's  former  affection  for 
her  had  not  entirely  died  away.  Poor  girl,  she  was 
soon  undeceived. 

One  evening  she  and  her  friends  were  at  one  end  of 
the  room  silently  toying  with  the  infant ;  Young, 
Smith,  and  Christian  were  sitting  smoking  on  the 
bench  outside.  The  evening  was  wonderfully  clear 
and  still  and,  but  for  the  ceaseless  throbbing  of  the 
surf  upon  the  cliffs  below,  no  sound  disturbed  the 
silence. 

Presently  she  heard  Young's  voice  addressing  her 
husband,  and  (for  she  now  spoke  English  fairly  well 
and  understood  it  still  better)  listened  to  hear  what 
they  were  saying. 

"  What  do  you  intend  to  call  the  boy  ? "  asked 
Young.     "Will  you  name  him  after  yourself?" 

"  No,"  answered  Christian,  with  intense  contempt ; 
"do  you  think  that  I  will  let  the  little  savage  per- 
petuate his  father's  name  and  shame  ?  She  can  call  the 
brat  by  any  name  she  pleases,  except  mine." 

Both  Young  and  Smith  were  silent,  and  the  latter 
looked  troubled.  Attached  as  he  was  to  Christian,  he 
felt  that  Mahina's  steady  devotion  had  deserved  better 
of  her  husband. 

"You  are  a  strange  man.  Christian,"  said  Young, 
presently  ;  and  calling  Alrema  he  took  her  by  the 
hand  and  led  her  away,  giving  Christian  only  a  curt 
"  good-night."  He  was  soon  followed  by  Terere  and 
her  husband  ;  Christian  remained  alone  outside,  lost 


MARINA'S  FIRST-BORN  185 

in  thought,  and  heard  nothing  of  a  soft  sobbing 
within. 

Midnight  was  long  past  when  he  rose  and  went 
inside.  He  thought  Mahina  was  asleep,  but  just  as  he 
laid  his  head  upon  the  pillow  he  felt  her  hand  upon  his 
forehead. 

"  Kirisiani,  I  heard  thee  speak  to-night.  Not  all 
did  I  understand  ;  only  this — that  thou  dost  despise 
thy  child,  and  wilt  not  give  him  thy  name." 

"  Call  it  by  some  Tahitian  name,  Mahina  ;  'tis  not 
an  English  child." 

"  True,"  she  answered  brokenly  ;  "  but  yet  'tis  thy 
child,  and  his  eyes  are  thy  eyes  ;  and  when  I  look 
into  his  face  I  see  thy  eyes  looking  into  mine,  as  they 
did  when  thy  heart  was  warm  with  love  for  me,  its 
mother.  And  for  this  do  I  desire  to  call  it  by  a  name 
of  thy  tongue  and  by  no  other." 

"  Very  well,"  he  answered,  after  a  moment's  thought, 
"have  your  own  way — stay,  I  have  a  name  for  it.  It 
was  born  upon  a  Thursday  in  October.  Call  it  Thurs- 
day October,  for " — and  his  voice  grew  hard  and 
sneering — "  'tis  the  way  they  name  negro  children  in 
the  West  Indies.  It  is  only  fitting  that  this  little 
savage  should  have  some  such  name." 

And  Mahina,  not  understanding  the  full  meaning  of 
his  words,  called  her  first-born  by  the  name  given  it  by 
her  husband. 


CHAPTER   XXI 


THE    FIRST    TO    DIE 


ALL  day  long,  from  the  red  blush  of  sunrise  till  the 
mantle  of  the  quick,  tropic  night  enshrouded 
the  lonely  island,  thousands  upon  thousands  of  sea-birds 
circled  round  the  high  mountain  peaks  and  vine-covered 
crags  of  Afita,  and  filled  the  air  with  their  w^ild 
clamour.  At  one  place,  where  the  grim  cliffs  started 
sheer  upward  from  the  crashing  surf,  they  had  made 
their  rookeries  upon  a  series  of  narrow  ledges  v/hich 
traversed  the  face  of  the  rock  in  undulating  lines  from 
the  summit.  The  highest  of  these  ledges  was  perhaps 
fifty  feet  from  the  scrub-covered  edge  of  the  precipice ; 
the  lowest  just  out  of  the  reach  of  the  drenching  spray 
that  in  stormy  weather  sprang  upward  in  misty  showers 
from  the  wild  commotion  of  the  waves  beneath. 

Here,  with  faces  turned  seaward,  the  great  black 
frigate  birds  and  the  blue-billed  kanapu^  with  many 
other  species  of  ocean  rangers,  sat  upon  their  eggs  and 
hatched  their  young,  and  the  weird  cries  of  the  fledg- 
lings mingled  with  the  hoarse,  croaking  notes  of  the 
parent  birds  all  through   the  night,   and  were  borne 


186 


THE  FIRST  TO  DIE  187 

in  strange,  mournful  cadences  and  mysterious  quaver- 
ings  through  the  darkened  forest  to  the  dwellings  of 
the  mutineers  and  their  brown-skinned  associates. 

The  eggs  of  these  birds  were  much  relished  by 
the  white  men,  and  it  was  one  of  the  duties  of  their 
patient  wives  to  hazard  their  lives  along  the  line  of  cliffs 
in  collecting  them.  Sure-footed  and  agile,  the  women 
would  sometimes  be  lowered  by  their  companions 
above  to  the  perilous  ledges  full  fifty  feet  down,  fill 
their  baskets  with  eggs,  and  be  hauled  up  again  in 
safety,  thinking  nothing  of  the  dreadful  death  that 
awaited  them  if  the  rope  parted  or  they  became  over- 
whelmed with  giddiness.  The  topmost  ledge,  where 
the  fierce-eyed  frigate  birds  had  made  their  rookery, 
could  be  reached  by  clambering  down  the  clifF  and 
along  its  jagged  face. 

For  two  or  three  days  great  numbers  of  these  sea- 
birds  had  been  seen  flying  swiftly  towards  the  island 
from  the  eastward,  and  the  Tahitians  understood  that 
the  breeding  season  drew  near,  and  that  very  shortly 
the  female  birds  would  be  sitting. 

Early  one  morning  Faito,  the  gentle,  delicate-featured 
wife  of  the  coarse  and  brutal  Williams,  set  out  along 
the  edge  of  the  cliffs  to  see  if  the  frigate  birds  had 
begun  to  lay.  She  was  alone.  Heart-broken  as  she 
was  at  her  husband's  cruel  conduct,  her  loving  nature 
impelled  her  to  venture  her  life  upon  the  cliffs,  so  that 
she  might  be  the  first  to  bring  the  much-coveted  eggs 
to  her  savage  master. 

Presently,  as  she  walked  along,  softly  singing  to  her- 
self some  chant  of  her  Tahitian  childhood,  a  pretty 


1 88  THE  MUTINEER 

black  and  white  kid — the  progeny  of  one  of  the  goats 
brought  to  the  island  in  the  Bounty — sprang  out  from 
the  dense  thicket  scrub  which  bordered  the  mountain 
path,  and  darted  along  the  edge  of  the  precipice. 

The  cry  of  delight  that  escaped  from  Faito  at  the 
prospect  of  catching  the  animal  reached  the  ears  of 
Talalu,  who  was  some  few  hundred  yards  away,  cutting 
down  a  toa  tree. 

"  Take  care,  take  care,  Faito,"  he  cried,  as  the  girl 
sped  swiftly  along,  her  black  hair  streaming  behind  her, 
her  dark  eyes  glowing,  and  her  bare  bosom  panting  in 
the  excitement  of  pursuit — for  she  knew  that  the 
capture  of  the  kid  would  at  least  bring  a  pleasant  word 
from  Williams  ;  then,  ere  Talalu  could  shout  another 
warning,  her  flying  feet  caught  in  a  creeper,  and  with- 
out a  cry  she  pitched  headlong  over  the  cliffs,  with  the 
sound  of  happy  laughter  yet  upon  her  lips. 

Dashing  through  the  thick  scrub,  Talalu  reached 
the  edge  of  the  precipice  and  looked  over  ;  there,  on  a 
little  pebbly  beach,  hollowed  out  in  the  face  of  a  chasm 
in  the  cliffs,  he  saw  the  dead  and  bleeding  body  of 
Faito  lying  upon  the  stones. 

This  was  the  prologue  to  a  bloody  tragedy  yet  to  be 
enacted  on  Pitcairn. 

Clambering  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  cliffs  by  a 
devious  and  dangerous  route,  Talalu  at  last  gained  the 
spot  where  the  body  of  the  dead  girl  lay.  He  took  it 
tenderly  in  his  arms  and  pressed  his  face  to  hers,  with 
streaming  eyes  and  sobs  of  pity,  then  slowly  and 
laboriously  began  the  perilous  ascent. 

It   was   noon    when    he    reached    the    settlement. 


THE  FIRST  TO  DIE  189 

Williams  and  Quintal  were  sitting  together  in  front  of 
the  former's  house  when  the  Tahitian  drew  near  with 
his  burden. 

"What  the  hell's  the  matter  now  ? "  asked  the  dead 
woman's  husband  roughly,  when  he  saw  his  wife's 
figure  lying  in  Talalu's  brawny  arms ;  then,  brute 
though  he  was,  his  dark  features  paled  when  her 
countryman  turned  Faito's  dead  face  towards  him. 

"Thy  wife  is  dead,  oh  worker  of  iron.  She  sought 
to  catch  a  kid,  thinking  to  please  thee.  She  tripped 
and  fell — and  died." 

Gently  laying  the  body  down  upon  the  couch  ot 
mats,  he  walked  away  without  a  word. 

The  tidings  of  Faito's  death  soon  brought  the  rest 
of  the  white  men's  wives  to  Williams'  house,  sobbing 
as  they  ran.  The  first  to  fling  herself  weeping  upon 
the  cold  bosom  of  the  dead  girl  was  Nahi,  the  wife  of 
Talalu.  She  was  a  tall,  slenderly  built  woman,  with 
big,  passionate  eyes,  although  she  had  the  gentle,  timid 
manner  of  a  child.  Seating  herself  by  the  body  of  the 
girl,  Nahi  first  pressed  her  lips  to  the  cold  face  of  her 
friend,  and  then  in  whispered  tones  directed  the  others 
in  their  ministrations  to  the  dead.  Towards  sunset,  as 
they  moved  to  and  fro  in  the  great  room  of  the  house, 
a  figure  darkened  the  doorway  and  Williams'  harsh 
voice  broke  in  upon  the  silence. 

"Hallo,  Nahi,"  he  said  in  English,  without  even 
glancing  at  the  shrouded  figure  upon  the  floor,  "  how 
are  you  ?  It's  not  often  I  catch  a  sight  of  you — and, 
by  God !  you're  too  pretty  a  woman  not  to  see  often." 

Slowly  Nahi  rose  to  her  feet.     She  understood  every 


I90  THE  MUTINEER 

word  that  was  said  to  her,  yet  curbed  her  anger,  and 
with  downcast  eyes  and  trembling  hands  answered  him 
in  Tahitian. 

"We  come.  Iron-worker,  to  mourn  for  Faito,  thy 
wife." 

Something  in  her  voice,  and  in  her  trembling,  yet 
indignant  attitude,  made  the  callous-hearted  man  turn 
away  without  a  further  word.  He  stepped  to  the 
door,  stood  there  irresolutely  for  a  moment,  and  then 
disappeared  into  the  darkness. 

All  through  the  night  the  mourning  watchers  sat 
beside  the  dead  girl ;  at  dawn  the  brown  men  dug  her 
grave  in  the  garden,  some  distance  from  the  back  of 
Williams'  dwelling.  Just  as  the  sun  became  level  with 
the  summit  of  the  cliffs  and  shot  its  bright  darts 
through  the  leafy  forest  aisles,  the  little  funeral  pro- 
cession gathered  round  the  grave,  and  Faito's  body, 
lying  upon  a  bier  covered  with  garlands  and  wreaths  of 
flowers  and  leaves,  was  placed  beside  it.  Then,  one  by 
one,  each  of  the  men  and  women  brought  off'erings  of 
food  and  young  drinking  coconuts  and  placed  them  by 
the  bier,  for  to  them  the  girl's  soul  was  hovering  near, 
and  her  body  would  need  refreshment  on  its  long 
journey  to  the  world  beyond.  Nahi  (who  was  not 
only  a  devoted  friend  of  Faito,  but  a  distant  blood- 
relation  as  well),  seated  herself  beside  the  grave,  and  in 
her  soft  Tahitian  tongue,  chanted  stories  of  the  dead 
girl's  life  ;  she  sang  of  her  innocent  childhood,  of  her 
deep  affection  for  her  parents  ;  of  her  loving,  gentle 
nature  ;  of  her  soft,  tender  beauty  ;  of  her  love  for 
the  white  iron-worker,  and  her  voyage  with  him  in 


THE  FIRST  TO  DIE  191 

the  'Bounty.  And  then  the  singer's  soul  seemed  to 
quicken,  and  her  voice  quivered  and  broke  as  she  told 
the  story  of  Faito's  death  ;  and  from  those  who  sat 
around  came  quick,  responsive  sobs  of  grief. 

When  she  ceased  the  v/omen  took  keen-edged  sharks' 
teeth,  and  thrust  them  into  their  arms  and  shoulders 
till  the  blood  poured  forth,  while  the  men  covered  their 
faces  with  their  hands,  and  bent  their  heads  to  the 
ground. 

For  nearly  an  hour  they  sat  thus,  then  in  silence 
the  men  rose  and  walked  quietly  away,  leaving  the 
women  to  mourn  by  themselves,  in  accordance  with 
Tahitian  custom,  for  two  days  beside  the  grave. 

That  nitjht  Mahina,  who  was  alone  in  the  house 
with  her  child,  sought  out  Christian  in  his  cave, 
where  he  had  been  for  the  past  two  days,  and  told 
him  of  Faito's  death. 

"  Her  troubles  are  over,"  was  his  moody  answer. 
"  Would  that  I  had  the  courage  to  leap  over  the  cliffs 
and  so  end  mine.  But  why  come  and  tell  me  this  ? 
It  concerns  me  not." 

"  She  was  ever  my  friend,"  answered  Mahina, 
gently,  "  my  friend  and  thine.  I  pray  thee  come 
mourn  with  me  at  her  burial,  else  will  shame  fall 
upon  me  if  thou  art  absent." 

He  raised  his  dark  face  to  hers,  and  an  angry  gleam 
shone  in  his  eyes.  "  I  tell  thee,  Mahina,  thou  dost 
but  pester  me.  The  woman  is  dead.  Would  I  were 
in  her  place." 

"  Thou  cruel  man,"  she  said,  and  the  tears  fell 
quickly  from    her   eyes   as  she    pressed   her  child  to 


192  THE  MUTINEER 

her  bosom,  "  thou  art  always  in  this  strange  mood 
now.  Alas !  what  evil  has  happened  to  thee  and 
me  ?  What  wicked  spirit  has  turned  thy  heart 
against  us  ?  Art  thou  tired  of  thy  wife  ?  Is  thy 
child,  born  to  thee  out  of  my  great  love,  hateful  to 
thy  sight  ? "  Then  the  infant  awoke,  and  she  pressed 
it  to  her  aching  breast  to  soothe  its  cries. 

Christian  sprang  up  from  the  matted  couch  upon 
which  he  lay,  and  with  the  light  of  madness  in  his 
eyes,  cursed  her,  her  child,  and  himself.  "  Go,"  he 
said  at  last,  hoarsely,  "  go,  leave  me  to  my  misery." 


CHAPTER   XXII 


A    LOYAL    FRIEND 


MAHINA  went  alone  to  the  burial  of  her  friend, 
and  the  other  women,  when  they  saw  her, 
knew  that  her  sorrow  was  not  so  much  for  the  dead 
girl  as  for  the  dead  love  of  Christian. 

Returning  from  her  husband's  cave,  she  met  Edward 
Young,  who  spoke  so  kindly  that  her  overwrought 
feelings  brought  a  flood  of  tears,  and  Young,  with  a 
strange  look,  had  drawn  her  to  him  and  bidden  her 
be  of  good  courage.  He  would  always  be  her  friend, 
he  said,  and  it  grieved  him  to  see  her  sad.  And 
Mahina,  drying  her  tears,  pressed  his  hand  gratefully, 
and  in  her  innocent  fashion  placed  her  cheek  against 
his  for  a  moment ;  for  was  he  not  her  husband's  friend 
and  brother,  and  therefore  hers.  And  Edward  Young, 
as  she  walked  away,  watched  her  with  a  smile  on  his 
lips,  and  muttered  to  himself — 

"  The  man  is  a  fool.  She  is  a  glorious  creature, 
and  I — well  I  don't  suppose  he  cares." 

On  the  second  morning,  long  ere  the  sun  had  dried 
14  193 


194  THE  MUTINEER 

the  glittering  diamonds  of  dew  trembling  on  every 
leaf  and  blade  of  grass,  Williams  came  across  the 
greensward  towards  his  wife's  grave  and  addressed 
the  mourning  women. 

"  Come  now,"  he  said  roughly.  "  Faito's  had 
enough  of  this  foolery,  and  so  have  I.  Put  her  in 
the  ground,  and  make  an  end  of  it." 

Then  Talalu  and  his  countrymen  stepped  quietly 
out  from  beneath  the  shade  of  a  great  tamanu  tree 
which  stood  near.  They  had  brought  their  final 
offerings  to  the  dead,  and  as  they  placed  these  at 
the  foot  of  the  grave,  all  the  rest  of  the  white  men 
but  Christian  appeared  upon  the  scene. 

At  the  harsh  command  of  Williams,  the  women 
huddled  timidly  together,  looking  fearfully  at  one 
another  ;  and  Talalu,  leaving  his  countrymen,  softly 
besought  the  man  to  allow  them  to  continue  their 
funeral  customs,  so  that  the  spirit  of  Faito  might  rest 
in  peace.     Mahina,  too,  joined  in  his  pleadings. 

To  the  brown-skinned  people  Williams  had  ever 
been  a  cruel  taskmaster  for  whom  they  worked  with- 
out murmuring  for  the  sake  of  his  wife,  whom  they 
loved  ;  and  now  that  she  was  dead  he  seemed  to  care 
nothing,  and  would  not  even  permit  them  to  "com- 
fort her  spirit." 

The  remaining  white  men  looked  on  in  curious 
silence,  while  Talalu  and  Mahina  begged  Williams 
not  to  interrupt  them.  Williams  had,  however, 
acquired  a  certain  influence  over  his  countrymen, 
and  they  were  not  disposed  to  interfere. 

Again    the   harsh   voice    of    the    man    bade    the 


A  LOYAL  FRIEND  195 

mourners  cease.  "  Let  this  folly  end,"  he  said 
angrily  in  Tahitian  ;  "  begone,  and  get  back  to 
work." 

The  words  stung  Talalu  to  the  quick,  and  with 
flashing  eyes  and  clenched  hands  he  faced  the  white 
man. 

"  Thou  dog  without  a  heart  !  "  he  cried  fiercely, 
"  may  thy  mother's  skin  be  made  into  a  water- 
bottle  !  Not  content  with  our  service  and  thy  wife's 
devotion,  thou  would'st  harrow  the  soul  of  the  dead 
with  thy  harsh  and  cruel  voice.  Shame  on  thee  for 
a  pitiless  man  !  Go  home  and  leave  us  with  the  body 
and  the  spirit  of  our  kinswoman.  She  is  nothing  to 
thee  now.  Thou  canst  not  harm  her  body,  but  her 
spirit  is  tormented  by  thy  very  presence  here." 

With  a  furious  gesture  Williams  advanced  towards 
him,  cursing  him  for  an  impudent  slave,  in  the  coarse 
language  he  always  used  towards  the  Tahitians. 
But  quick  as  lightning  Mahina  intercepted  him. 
"Stop,  thou  low-born  sailor,"  she  said,  "and  leave 
us,  as  Talalu  hath  desired  thee,  or  it  will  go  ill  with 
thee  !  I  swear  by  Oro  and  Tane  and  the  bones  of 
my  father  to  stab  thee  to  the  heart  if  thou  dost  but 
even  raise  thy  hand  to  Talalu." 

Callous  as  the  white  men  were,  they  drew  back 
and  muttered  to  Williams  to  leave  her  and  her  fellow- 
mourners  alone  ;  and  Williams  himself  blanched  before 
the  slight  figure  of  Christian's  wife,  and  with  a  savage 
threat  of  vengeance  against  Talalu,  turned  away,  fol- 
lowed by  the  rest  of  the  mutineers  except  Young. 
He,  walking  apart  from  them,  seated  himself  on  the 


196  THE  MUTINEER 

trunk  of  a  fallen  tree  near  by,  called  Alrema,  and  told 
her  to  hasten  to  his  house  and  bring  his  fowling-piece, 
as  he  intended  to  shoot  some  sea-birds. 

As  soon  as  her  graceful  figure  disappeared  among 
groves  of  breadfruit  between  the  grassy  sward  and  the 
houses  of  the  white  men.  Young  walked  over  to  where 
Mahina  sat,  apart  from  the  others. 

"  Dear  friend  of  my  heart,"  he  said,  taking  her 
hand,  "  thou  knowest  that  I  am  thy  friend,  dost  thou 
not  ?  " 

"  Truly,"  said  Mahina,  "  always  my  friend — my 
friend  and  my  brother,  and  the  friend  and  brother 
of  my  husband." 

A  disappointed  look  swept  over  Young's  face,  and 
he  dropped  her  hand  moodily.  "  Nay,  not  so  now. 
It  is  always  in  my  heart  that  he  whom  I  once  loved 
as  a  brother  hath  acted  cruelly  to  thee.  Thou  art  a 
woman  fair  and  sweet,  and  to  be  for  ever  loved.  And 
because  he  hath  neglected  and  turned  his  heart  away 
from  thee  and  thy  love  hath  my  friendship  for  him 
grown  smaller  and  smaller  day  by  day." 

"  By  and  by,  when  the  evil  moods  have  left  him,  he 
will  love  me  again,"  said  Mahina,  looking  straight 
before  her,  and  as  she  spoke,  the  falling  tears  belied 
her  hopeful  words. 

For  many  minutes  they  sat  thus,  she  weeping  softly 
to  herself,  and  Young  watching  his  opportunity  to 
speak  again.  Presently  he  saw  Alrema  returning  with 
his  fowling-piece.  He  rose  and  touched  Mahina 
lightly  on  the  shoulder. 

"  Farewell  till  to-morrow,"  he  said  in  a  low  voice. 


f 


A  LOYAL  FRIEND  197 

"  Remember  that  I  am  always,  always  thy  friend — 
and  that  I  love  thee — he  no  longer  does." 

She  looked  up  with  a  low,  startled  cry,  and  hastily 
rising  from  her  seat,  went  over  to  the  other  women 
and  took  her  child  from  Terere.  The  tone  of  Young's 
words  had  filled  her  with  a  strange  feeling  of  misery 
and  fear. 


CHAPTER   XXIII 


THE    OPPRESSOR 


FOR  some  time  nothing  happened  to  disturb  the 
uneventful  life  of  the  islanders.  Mahina,  with 
aching  heart,  saw  Christian  daily  grow  more  melan- 
choly and  morose,  and  was  heedless  of  all  else.  But 
as  the  year  drew  to  a  close  her  saddened  face  and 
sorrowful  eyes  must  have  touched  her  husband's  heart, 
and  when  the  birth  of  her  second  child  was  drawing 
near  he  left  the  cave  and  dwelt  v/ith  her  till  the  infant 
was  born  and  she  was  strong  again. 

"  Call  him  Charles,"  he  said  to  her  as  she  sat  with 
with  him  one  evening  nursing  the  infant  ;  and  the 
words,  simple  as  they  were,  filled  her  still  loving  heart 
with  a  great  joy.  Twice  only  had  she  met  Young 
since  the  day  of  Faito's  burial,  and  though  he  had 
tried  to  detain  her,  she  managed  to  get  away  from 
him  ;  for  she  now  felt  that  he  cared  for  her  more  than 
his  loyalty  to  Alrema  justified. 

During    the   same    year    others   of    the    mutineers 

became  fathers.     In  addition  to  Mahina's  two  there 

were    now    three   other   children    playing   upon    the 

198 


THE  OPPRESSOR  199 

matted  floors  of  their  parents'  dwellings  by  day,  and 
lulled  to  sleep  at  night  by  the  ceaseless  throbbing 
of  the  surf  that  beat  against  the  stern  cliffs  of  their 
island  home. 

The  houses  occupied  by  Christian  and  Mahina, 
Young  and  Alrema,  and  Smith  and  Terere  were  a 
considerable  distance  from  those  of  the  other  white 
men.  That  of  Christian  was  furthest  north-west  of 
all ;  indeed,  it  was  quite  shut  out  of  view  from  the  rest 
by  a  short,  abrupt  spur  which  shot  eastward  from  the 
mountains  almost  to  the  verge  of  the  beetling  cliffs. 

Williams  and  Young  lived  near  to  each  other. 
Some  months  after  the  burial  of  Faito  the  former 
called  upon  his  neighbour  and  asked  him  to  come 
outside  for  a  few  minutes.  Alrema,  who  had  noticed 
that  her  husband  and  Williams  were  becoming  very 
intimate,  gave  the  visitor  an  angry  glance  from  her 
dark,  long-lashed  eyes,  as  he  sat  upon  the  bench  in 
front  of  the  house. 

"  Let's  go  for  a  bit  of  a  walk,"  said  Williams  pre- 
sently as  Young  joined  him  ;  "  I  want  to  have  a  talk 
with  you  over  that  little  matter "  ;  and  he  laughed 
coarsely,  and  by  a  gesture  indicated  his  own  dwelling. 

Young  nodded,  and  Alrema  saw  the  two  men 
saunter  off"  together  along  the  cliffs.  She  had  always 
disliked  Williams,  and  thought  he  was  in  some  way 
responsible  for  her  husband's  manner  to  herself,  which 
had  so  altered  of  late.  Passionately  fond  of,  and 
fiercely  jealous  of  him,  her  quick  perception  of  the 
change  in  his  conduct  filled  her  with  a  vague,  un- 
defined alarm  ;  and  although  as  yet  she  did  not  doubt 


200  THE  MUTINEER 

his  loyalty,  she  had  seen  how  his  face  brightened 
visibly  whenever  Mahina  and  her  child  came  to  visit 
them.  Of  Mahina  herself  she  had  no  misgivings  ; 
but  it  seemed  strange  that  whereas  in  former  days  she 
had  always  accompanied  Young  to  Christian's  house, 
he  now  frequently  went  there  alone,  although  she  had 
told  him  that  Christian  was  in  his  cave.  Mahina,  too, 
seemed  different,  and  her  face  wore  a  troubled,  nervous 
look  which  her  friend  could  not  understand. 

After  the  birth  of  his  second  child  Christian  re- 
mained, for  a  time,  constantly  with  his  beautiful 
wife,  whose  face  grew  radiant  with  happiness.  But 
soon  his  brooding  mood  returned  to  him  in  all  its 
former  force,  and  he  resumed  his  lonely  walks  along 
the  cliffs  and  spent  his  nights  alone  in  his  mountain 
cave.  Mahina,  Alrema  knew,  had  long  since  resigned 
herself  to  her  husband's  fits  of  gloom,  yet  now  she 
appeared  more  than  ever  a  prey  to  melancholy.  In 
some  way  Williams  seemed  to  be  connected  with  this, 
and  Alrema  noticed  that  whenever  Young  went  to 
Christian's  house  Williams  had  preceded  him  there. 

Taking  up  her  infant  daughter  in  her  arms,  Alrema 
went  outside  and  sat  down  under  the  shade  of  a  bread- 
fruit tree  to  wait  her  husband's  return.  For  nearly  an 
hour  she  amused  herself  playing  with  the  child,  till, 
overpowered  by  the  soft,  languorous  morning  air,  she, 
pillowing  her  head  upon  a  rolled-up  mat,  slept. 

The  sun  was  high  when  she  was  awakened  by 
hearing  voices  near.  She  at  once  recognised  Williams* 
harsh,  and  her  husband's  cool,  quiet  tones.  As  they 
talked  they  were  passing  through  the  breadfruit  grove 


THE  OPPRESSOR  201 

and  stopped  quite  close  to  where  she  lay.  Williams 
was  speaking. 

"  Well,  that's  understood.  You  stand  by  me  and 
I'll  stand  by  you.  I'm  going  to  get  the  woman  I 
want  if  I  have  to  shoot  every  damned  red-skinned 
savage  on  the  island  to  get  her." 

"  I'm  not  going  in  for  anything  like  that,"  she 
heard  her  husband  reply  ;  "  I  am  quite  content  to 
wait  till " 

"Till  that  lunatic  jumps  over  the  cliffs  and  leaves 
a  widow  for  you,"  said  Williams,  with  a  coarse  laugh. 
"  Well,  you've  got  more  patience  than  me.  If  I 
wanted  her  I'd  make  just  as  short  a  job  of  him  as  I 
mean  to  make  of  this  Talalu.  Anyway,  I'm  going 
to  set  you  a  good  example  by  taking  another  wife. 
Man  alive  !  what  are  you  afraid  of  ?  She'll  be  willing 
enough  before  long  to  come  to  you.  She  ain't  the 
kind  of  woman  to  stay  by  herself  while  her  husband 
leaves  her  to  live  in  a  cave.  I  daresay,"  he  added, 
with  another  rude  laugh,  "  that  Alrema  would  lend 
you  a  hand  to  talk  her  over.  That's  what  I'd  have 
made  Faito  do." 

An  angry  exclamation  of  dissent  from  Young,  and 
Alrema  heard  him  leave  his  companion  and  go  towards 
the  house.  Then,  her  brain  reeling  with  dreadful 
suspicions  of  the  man  she  loved  and  the  friend  she 
trusted,  she  took  up  her  sleeping  infant  and  followed 
him. 

Williams,  with  a  wicked  look  upon  his  evil  face, 
strode  away  towards  his  own  dwelling.  He  had 
managed  to  secure  one  of  the  best  and  most  fertile 


202  THE  MUTINEER 

portions  of  the  nine  lots  into  which  the  island  was 
divided,  and  by  his  domineering  conduct  succeeded  in 
making  the  islanders  perform  more  labour  in  its  culti- 
vation than  they  expended  upon  any  other  of  the 
mutineers'  land.  As  he  drew  near  his  plantation  he 
saw  the  gigantic  figure  of  Talalu  and  the  slender, 
graceful  form  of  Nahi,  his  gentle  wife,  moving  about 
in  the  garden.  They  were  building  a  low  wall  of 
coral  stones  to  enclose  the  plantation,  and  Williams' 
eyes  gleamed  savagely  as  he  saw  Nahi,  who  had  just 
placed  a  stone  in  position,  look  up  at  her  husband's 
face  with  a  smile,  to  which  Talalu  responded  with  an 
endearing  expression  and  a  loving  caress. 

The  white  man  stood  for  a  while  watching  them. 
The  woman's  lithe,  supple  figure,  her  bared  bosom 
and  long  mantle  of  black  hair  falling  over  her  rounded 
shoulders  fascinated  and  yet  irritated  his  savage,  sensuous 
nature.  "  That  fellow,  that  cursed,  great  hulking 
brute  to  possess  such  a  woman !  And  he  only  a 
slave  ! "  He  watched  her  white  teeth  gleam,  as  her 
lips  parted  in  an  admiring  smile,  when  Talalu,  raising 
a  huge,  jagged  stone  in  his  brawny  arms,  placed  it 
lightly  upon  the  smaller  one  her  slender  hands  had  lifted. 

Williams  sat  and  waited.  He  knew  that  at  noon- 
time they  would  cease  working  for  an  hour  to  rest 
and  wait  upon  him  while  he  ate  his  mid-day  meal. 
And  then  he  meant  to  act. 

Presently,  Talalu,  glancing  up  at  the  sun,  spoke  to 
Nahi.  They  ceased  their  labours,  and  walked  towards 
their  own  little  dwelling  of  thatch.  Outside  stood  a 
hollowed  tree  trunk  filled  with  water.    Then  Williams 


THE  OPPRESSOR  203 

saw  Nahi,  dropping  the  garment  of  tappa-cloth  which 
encircled  her  waist,  deftly  replace  it  by  a  girdle  of 
leaves,  then  her  husband  talcing  a  cocoanut  shell, 
dipped  it  into  the  water  and  poured  it  over  her 
shoulders  again  and  again  to  wash  away  the  dust 
which  stained  her  clear,  bronzed  skin.  Nude  to  the 
hips,  her  lissome  figure  glinted  and  shone  like  a 
polished  statue  of  metal  in  the  bright  morning  sun,  as 
the  water  ran  down  over  her  back,  bosom,  and  legs, 
while  her  shapely  arms  were  raised  as  she  held  up  her 
glossy  mantle  of  hair.  Her  bath  finished,  she  took 
the  coconut  shell  from  her  husband's  hand  and 
motioned  him  to  stoop  ;  but  Talalu,  with  gentle, 
jesting  rudeness,  pushed  her  away,  and  filling  the 
shell  poured  stream  after  stream  of  the  cooling  water 
over  his  own  body. 

"  That's  the  last  time  you'll  ever  do  that  for  her," 
said  Williams  to  himself,  as  his  lustful  eyes  revelled  in 
the  beauty  of  the  girl's  figure.  He  got  up,  went 
inside  and  threw  himself  upon  his  couch.  They 
would  be  in  presently,  he  knew,  to  bring  him  his 
dinner  of  yams,  fish,  and  birds'  eggs. 

Nahi  came  first.  In  one  hand  she  carried  a  platter 
of  woven  coconut  leaves,  upon  which  were  a  baked 
fish  and  some  roasted  breadfruit,  in  the  other  a  young 
drinking  coconut.  Outside,  Talalu,  thrusting  a  pointed 
stake  into  the  ground,  began  to  husk  some  more  nuts 
for  the  white  man  to  drink. 

"  Haeri  niai "  ("  Come  here  "),  his  master  called. 

The  Tahitian's  huge  figure  stood  in  the  doorway, 
holding  a  half-husked  coconut  in  his  hand. 


204  THE  MUTINEER 

"  You  needn't  do  any  work  to-day,  Talalu,"  said 
Williams,  with  a  growl  of  apparent  good  nature. 
"  Tetihiti  and  Nihu  are  going  out  fishing  for  Kawin- 
tali  (Quintal).  You  may  go  with  them.  Nahi  can 
stay.  Malama  (Quintal's  wife)  will  be  here  soon 
with  her  husband,  and  she  can  help  Nahi  to  work 
upon  the  mat  she  is  making  for  the  floor." 

"  Good,"  answered  the  unsuspecting  Tahitian,  with 
a  pleased  smile  ;  "  'tis  well,  oh  Iron-worker,  that  the 
mat  be  soon  finished.  Then  will  Nahi  and  I  carry 
up  many  baskets  of  fine  pebbles,  so  that  the  mat  may 
rest  flat  and  even  on  the  ground." 

''  May  you  be  lucky  in  your  fishing,"  called  Nahi, 
as  her  husband,  a  minute  later,  passed  the  door,  carry- 
ing his  basket  of  fishing  tackle.  Then,  the  white 
man's  meal  being  in  readiness,  she  took  up  a  fan  and 
stood  by  him  while  he  ate. 

For  some  minutes  he  ate  his  food  in  silence,  then 
motioned  to  the  woman  to  come  nearer.  She  obeyed 
him  with  a  timid  glance,  and  a  slight  tremor  quivered 
her  bare  shoulders  for  a  moment. 

Suddenly  Williams  pushed  his  stool  back  from  the 
table.  Fixing  his  eyes  on  Nahi's  expectant  face,  he 
said  to  her  in  English — 

"  Nahi,  my  girl,  I've  always  had  a  fancy  for  you, 
and  I  want  you.     You're  going  to  be  my  new  wife." 

With  a  look  of  wild  terror  she  shrank  back,  her 
hands  covering  her  face.  The  next  instant  the  man 
seized  her  by  the  wrists. 

"  Come,  now,  none  of  that,  Nahi  !  I'm  going  to 
have  you  for  my  wife,  so  don't  be  a  fool." 


THE  OPPRESSOR  205 

"  Let  me  go,"  she  pleaded  in  Tahitian  ;  "  how  can 
I  be  wife  to  thee  ?  Am  I  not  wife  to  Talalu  ?  'Tis 
but  a  poor  jest  to  so  frighten  a  weak  woman." 

He  laughed  fiercely.  "  'Tis  no  jest.  Thou  art 
my  desire  and  I  will  have  thee.  As  for  thy  hus- 
band  "  he  made  a  contemptuous  gesture. 

The  woman's  eyes  blazed.  She  tore  her  hands  from 
his  grasp  and  faced  him.  "Thou  coward  !  He  is 
better  than  thou  art.  He  is  of  chief's  blood — thou 
but  a  slave  in  thine  own  land,"  and  with  a  sudden 
spring  she  bounded  through  the  open  doorway  and 
ran  swiftly  in  the  direction  of  the  other  white  men's 
houses. 

With  panting  bosom  and  gasping  breath  she  reached 
Christian's  house  and  darted  inside.  Mahina  was 
seated  on  the  matted  floor  crooning  to  her  youngest 
child  ;  Christian,  as  usual,  was  away  at  his  cave. 

Shaking  with  fear  and  anger,  Nahi,  generally  so 
calm  and  gentle,  flung  herself  at  Mahina's  feet  and 
wept. 

"  What  is  this,  friend  of  my  heart  ?  "  asked  Mahina, 
laying  her  infant  down  and  drawing  the  girl's  head 
upon  her  lap.  She  listened  in  grave  silence  until  Nahi 
had  finished  her  story,  which  ended  in  an  earnest 
appeal.  "  Kirisiani,"  she  said,  "  was  strong  and  power- 
ful, and  none  of  the  white  men  dared  face  his  anger. 
Surely  he  would  not  let  the  Iron-worker  do  this 
wrong." 

"  The  white  men,  I  fear,  care  little  what  becomes 
of  us  of  Tahiti  now,"  said  Mahina  sadly ;  "  yet  will 
we  go  to  my  husband  and  tell  him  thy  trouble.     Still 


2o6  THE  MUTINEER 

do  I  fear  that  he  will  not  heed  thee  ;  and  then  indeed 
must  thou  go  to  the  Iron-worker." 

Nahi  wept  silently  ;  when  she  ceased  Mahina 
sought  to  comfort  her,  telling  her  that  if  the  Iron- 
worker succeeded  in  taking  her  away  from  Talalu  it 
would  not  be  her  fault — she  would  but  yield  to  circum- 
stances. 

The  woman  turned  her  tear-stained  face  to  Mahina 
in  open  wonder. 

"  What !  Hast  thou  no  other  words  of  comfort  for 
me  than  these  ?  Put  thyself  in  my  place.  How  can 
I  do  this  wrong  to  the  man  I  love — he  who  hath 
toiled  and  fought  for  me  ?  Wouldst  thou  so  wrong 
thy  husband  as  to  listen  to  words  of  love  from  another 
man  ?  " 

"  My  husband  !  "  —  Mahina  laughed  bitterly. 
"  Little  does  he  care  if  other  men  speak  words  of  love 
to  me.  His  heart  is  dead,  and  I  am  but  a  leaf  in  his 
path." 

"  Nay,"  said  Nahi  gently,  placing  her  hands  on  her 
friend's  shoulder,  "  thy  Kirisiani  hath  still  a  true  heart 
for  thee.  He  is  not  as  these  low-blooded  dogs  of 
sailors.  He  is  an  arii  (a  chief)  of  the  same  blood  as 
Tuti  ;  and  the  sailors  fear  him.  Come  then,  dear 
friend,  and  join  thy  voice  with  mine,  so  that  he  may 
save  me  from  the  Iron-worker,  whom  I  hate  and  fear." 

"  We  will  go,  Nahi.  Yet  hope  for  nothing. 
Kirisiani's  love  for  us,  which  was  once  so  strong  and 
hot,  has  grown  cold.  For  me,  who  would  give  my  life 
for  his,  he  cares  naught.  But  a  little  while  ago,  when 
my  babe  was  born,  he  was  kind  to  me  and  sat  by  my 


THE  OPPRESSOR  207 

side  here  when  the  sun  sank  in  the  sea,  and  let  his 
hand  rest  in  mine."  Her  soft  voice  trembled  in 
mournful  pathos.  "But  again  the  black  thoughts 
came  to  him,  and  he  left  me  to  return  to  his  cave. 
He  careth  for  me  no  longer.  Yet  will  we  go  and 
pray  him  to  protect  thee  from  this  evil  man." 

In  an  hour  the  two  women  reached  Christian's 
cave  at  the  furthest  extremity  of  the  island.  It 
opened  from  a  high  ridge  of  black,  jagged,  and 
almost  inaccessible  rocks.  Near  by  was  a  tiny  cas- 
cade, leaping  noisily  from  ledge  to  ledge  as  it  coursed 
towards  the  valley. 

From  its  situation  the  cave  commanded  an  extensive 
view  of  the  horizon  round  the  whole  island,  and  its 
occupant  would  see  a  sail  long  before  any  one  else  on 
Pitcairn  could  discern  it.  Approach  was  so  difficult 
that,  even  if  a  large  party  succeeded  in  crossing  the 
dizzy,  narrow  ledge  of  rocks  connecting  it  with  the 
mountain  spur  beneath.  Christian  could  have  shot 
every  one  of  them  before  they  were  within  a  hundred 
feet  of  his  refuge. 

As  they  passed  through  the  little  settlement  on 
their  mission,  the  two  women  called  at  the  other 
houses,  and  told  the  story  of  Williams'  design.  Just 
as  they  reached  the  ridge  they  heard  some  one  follow- 
ing them,  and  looking  back  saw  the  stalwart  figure  of 
Smith,  who  had  come  to  help  them  in  gaining 
Christian's  assistance.     Behind  him  came  Young. 

As  the  sound  of  their  voices  ascended  to  the  heights, 
they  saw  Christian  emerge  from  the  cave.  He  was 
dressed  in  shirt  and  trousers  only,  and  his  long  black 


2o8  THE  MUTINEER 

hair  hung,  loose  and  neglected,  about  his  shoulders. 
For  a  few  moments  he  regarded  them  without  speak- 
ing ;  then  as  Mahina  in  a  timid  voice  said  they  desired 
to  talk  to  him,  he  descended  the  ridge  to  meet  them. 

"Why  is  this  ?"  he  asked  sullenly,  with  an  angry 
look  at  each  in  turn  ;  "  am  I  to  have  no  peace,  no 
rest  ?     Can  I  not  live  alone  ?  " 

Smith's  honest,  open  face  flushed  deeply,  but  he 
said  nothing ;  the  women  should  speak  first,  he 
thought,  then  he  would  try. 

Nahi,  in  a  trembling  voice,  told  her  story,  and 
sobbingly  besought  his  help,  and  Mahina  joined  her 
in  her  earnest  entreaties. 

He  heard  them  through  in  moody  silence,  and 
turned  to  Smith.  "  From  the  time  of  our  landing 
here,  on  this  cursed  rock,  I  have  avoided  all  inter- 
ference with  any  of  you.  You  have  made  slaves  of 
these  Tahitians,  who  are  better  than  any  white  man  on 
the  island  except  yourself  and  Young.  If  they 
retaliate  upon  you,  it  will  be  your  own  faults.  I 
don't  say  that  you  and  Young  are  like  the  rest  ;  but 
yet  you  have  permitted  those  scoundrels,  McCoy, 
Quintal,  Mills,  and  Williams  to  oppress  these  unfor- 
tunate people.  Still,  I  will  make  one  more  effort  for 
the  common  good,  and  try  to  dissuade  this  ruffian 
from  stealing  Talalu's  wife." 

"Well  spoken,  Mr.  Christian,"  said  Smith.  "By 
God  !  sir,  I'll  not  see  Talalu  wronged  in  this  fashion  if 
you'll  help  me  ;  and  I  dare  swear  Mr.  Young  will 
join  us  in  clapping  a  stopper  on  his  game." 

Accompanied  by  Nahi  and  Mahina,  the  three  men 


THE  OPPRESSOR  209 

returned  to  the  settlement.  As  they  walked,  Young 
tried  to  speak  to  Mahina  in  a  whisper,  but  with  a 
nervous  look  she  quickened  her  pace  and  caught  up  to 
her  husband,  who  was  in  advance  of  them  all. 


15 


CHAPTER  XXIV 


THE    QUARREL 


WHEN  they  reached  the  settlement,  they  found 
nearly   all    the   little    community  assembled 
outside  the  large  storehouse. 

Williams  himself  was  not  among  them,  neither  was 
Talalu  ;  but  Lunalio,  a  Raiatean  girl,  the  wife  of 
Martin,  whispered  to  Nahi  that  he  was  coming.  A 
look  of  joy  overspread  Nahi's  face.  She  knew 
Williams'  savage  disposition  and  feared  that  Talalu 
had  met  with  some  treachery  as  he  returned  with  his 
companions  from  fishing.  And,  indeed,  Williams, 
with  a  loaded  musket  in  his  hand,  had  taken  up  his 
position  behind  a  rock  on  the  path  leading  up  from 
the  cliffs,  intending  to  shoot  the  unsuspecting  man  as 
he  ascended.  But  it  so  happened  that  Talalu,  instead 
of  taking  the  mountain  track,  came  with  his  com- 
panions along  the  wider  and  more  frequented  path 
leading  directly  to  the  storehouse  ;  and  the  white 
man,  hiding  his  musket  among  the  rocks,  had  waited 
till  the  natives  were  out  of  sight,  and  then  followed 
them.     A  quarter  of  an  hour  later  he  sauntered  coolly 


THE  QUARREL  211 

towards  the  assembled  people,  and  the  babble  of  excited 
tongues  told  him  that  the  Tahitians  were  discuss- 
ing with  the  whites  his  intention  to  appropriate 
Nahi. 

A  dead  silence  ensued  the  moment  he  made  his 
appearance.  Standing  in  front  of  the  storehouse 
were  the  white  men,  most  of  them  armed  with 
muskets  and  cutlasses.  Whether  they  were  for  or 
against  him  Williams  could  not  for  the  moment  tell, 
but  he  had  no  doubt  of  the  feelings  of  the  islanders, 
whose  dark  eyes  blazed  with  hatred.  A  little  apart 
from  the  rest  of  them  stood  Talalu,  in  his  hand  a 
keen-edged  turtle-spear,  and  with  a  look  of  suppressed 
fury  upon  his  face. 

Squaring  his  shoulders,  and  placing  his  hands  jauntily 
upon  his  hips,  Williams  bade  the  white  men  a  mocking 
good-day. 

"  Quite  a  little  gathering,  I  see.  Ain't  I  got  an 
invitation,  or  didn't  you  think  my  company  good 
enough  ?  Are  you  talking  about  me  ?  "  and  he  shot  a 
fierce  glance  at  Fletcher  Christian,  who  regarded  him 
with  unmoved  features. 

"We  are  talking  about  you,  Williams,"  said 
Christian  quietly,  stepping  out  from  the  other  white 
men.  "What  are  you  trying  to  do  with  this  man's 
wife  ?  For  the  peace  of  our  little  community — for 
God's  sake — think  before  you  go  further." 

"  That's  all  very  fine,  Mr.  Christian,"  he  answered 
rudely,  "  but  'tis  hard  if  I  can't  do  as  I  choose  with 
my  own." 

Christian  looked  at  him  contemptuously.     "  Your 


212  THE  MUTINEER 

own  !  What  right  have  you  to  speak  of  this  woman 
Nahi  as  yours  ?  " 

"  Who  are  you  to  question  my  right  ?  You  are 
not  an  officer  of  the  'Bounty  now." 

Christian's  face  paled  at  the  insulting  words,  but  he 
restrained  himself. 

"  I  do  not  ask  you  as  a  right,  Williams,  but  as  a 
favour,  not  to  attempt  this  thing.  I  am  sure  every 
man  but  yourself  sees  that  you  will  rue  it  if  you  do." 

"That  is  what  I  told  him  long  ago,"  broke  in 
Quintal,  who,  rude  and  overbearing  as  he  was  in  some 
respects  to  the  Tahitians,  was  never  tyrannical,  and 
often  tried  to  check  Williams'  brutality. 

"I  am  glad  to  hear  you  say  this.  Quintal,"  said 
Christian.  "  Williams  does  not  seem  to  know  what 
it  is  he  contemplates."  His  eye  fell  upon  the  stalwart 
figure  of  Talalu,  who  with  gleaming  eyes  and  clenched 
hands  was  looking  at  the  persecutor  of  his  wife. 

"  Come  here,  Talalu,"  said  Christian. 

The  islander  looked  at  him  for  a  moment ;  then 
thrusting  the  barbed  point  of  his  turtle-spear  into  the 
ground,  he  walked  slowly  over  to  the  white  man. 

"  What  is  it  thou  wouldst  say  to  me,  Kirisiani  ?  " 
he  asked  in  deep,  guttural  tones,  which  quivered  with 
passion. 

"This,"  and  Fletcher  Christian's  voice  rang  out 
loud  and  clear,  as  he  pointed  contemptuously  to 
Williams — "  this  do  I  say.  This  Williams  the  Iron- 
worker is  but  a  poor,  uncultured  slave,  who  knows 
naught  that  is  good,  and  the  evil  in  his  heart  hath 
killed  all  knowledge  of  what  is  right  and  just.     I  pray 


THE  QUARREL  213 

thee  have  patience  with  him,  and  we  will  try  to  teach 
him  better." 

"  What  the  hell  do  you  mean  ? "  asked  Wiliams 
savagely,  who  understood  Tahitian  sufficiently  well  to 
know  what  Christian  had  said.  "  What  sort  of  talk 
is  this  ?  Do  you  mean  to  tell  this  cursed,  naked 
savage  that  he  is  a  better  man  than  I  am  ? " 

"  Better  than  you !  By  heavens,  you  ruffian,  you 
are  a  thousand  times  more  of  a  savaffe  than  he  ?  And 
I,  who  am  to  blame  for  bringing  such  men  as  him 
from  their  homes  and  exposing  them  to  the  danger  of 
contact  with  such  sweepings  of  the  hulks  as  you  are, 
will  take  care  you  do  him  or  his  countrymen  no  more 
wrong  than  you  have  done  already." 

"  No,  no,  Mr.  Christian,  don't  talk  like  that,"  said 
Brown.  "  Williams  is  as  good  a  man  as  any  of  us, 
and  I  don't  see  why  you  should  aggravate  him  by  such 
words." 

"  Damn  such  talk,  I  say,"  said  Mills  insolently, 
walking  apart  from  the  others  and  standing  beside 
Williams,  "if  the  man  wants  the  woman,  let  him 
have  her.  He  ain't  got  a  wife,  and  you  can't  expect 
a  white  man  to  go  without  one  when  one  can  be  had 
for  the  taking." 

Talalu  turned  upon  him.  "  I  will  kill  him  or  any 
other  man  who  tries  to  take  my  wife  from  me,"  he 
muttered  with  set  lips. 

"None  of  that,  my  fine  fellow,"  said  Brown  in 
English.  "  Take  care  what  you  say  about  killing 
people.  You  will  find  that  we  can  do  some  killing  if 
we  are  put  to  it." 


214  THE  MUTINEER 

Williams  looked  at  Christian  with  rage  and  hatred 
in  his  face.  "  What  do  you  think  of  it  now,  Mr. 
Christian  ?  Am  I  to  do  as  I  like  and  as  my  ship- 
mates want  me  to,  or  are  you  going  to  join  with  these 
damned  savages  and  try  to  stop  me  ?  " 

"  I'll  tell  you  plainly  what  I  will  do,  Williams.  I 
will  protect  these  people  at  the  hazard  of  my  life  ;  and 
though  I  stand  alone  I  will  prevent  this  outrage,  even 
if  I  fight  the  whole  lot  of  you." 

"  He  is  mad  to  say  this,"  whispered  Edward  Young 
to  Mahina,  as  he  pressed  her  hand,  "  but,"  and  he  gave 
her  a  meaning  look,  "for  your  sake,  Mahina,  I  will 
stand  by  him."  Then  he  stepped  out  and  stood  beside 
her  husband,  and  said — 

"  You'll  not  stand  alone,  Mr.  Christian,  while  I  am 
here.  While  I  don't  altogether  agree  with  you,  I 
don't  believe  in  Williams  taking  the  woman  against 
her  will.  Let  us  come  to  some  arrangement  about 
her." 

"I,  too,  am  with  you,  sir! "  cried  Smith. 

"And  I !  "  "And  I!  "  echoed  Quintal  and  McCoy. 

"  Thank  you,  my  lads,"  said  Christian  ;  "  I  knew 
there  were  some  among  us  with  a  sense  of  justice." 

Williams  looked  at  the  four  men  one  after  another 
and  folded  his  brawny  arms  across  his  tattooed  chest. 

"  All  right,"  he  sneered  ;  "  there's  not  going  to  be 
any  fighting  over  this.  But  you  can  make  certain  of 
one  thing.  If  you  won't  give  me  my  own  way  in 
this  matter  you  may  go  to  hell,  the  whole  lot  of  you, 
before  I'll  sweat  at  the  bounty's  forge  making  tools 
for  these  cursed  savages  to  till  your  ground.     And  yet, 


THE  QUARREL  215 

by  God  !  rU  get  my  own  way  all  the  same  in  the 
end  ! " 

Then  he  walked  away  towards  his  house. 

"  Trouble  will  come  of  this,  mark  my  words,  Mr. 
Christian,"  said  Brown.  "'Tis  a  pity  you  should  in- 
interfere  with  the  man.  You'll  find  he'll  have  the 
woman  in  spite  of  you,  never  fear." 

"Then  his  life  will  pay  the  penalty,"  answered 
Christian  fiercely.  "  You  do  not  seem  to  understand, 
Brown,  that  while  a  single  girl  may  be  taken  by  force 
sometimes  the  marriage-tie  among  the  Tahitians  is 
held  as  sacred  as  among  civilised  people.  But  I  think 
Talalu  will  take  care  of  his  wife,  and  there  are  three 
or  four  men  who  will  help  him  to  do  so." 

Then,  with  a  few  words  of  farewell  to  the  islanders 
who  thronged  around  him  with  protestations  of  grati- 
tude, he  turned  quickly  away  with  Mahina  by  his 
side. 

Before  they  had  gone  a  hundred  yards  they  heard 
some  one  running  after  them,  and  Nahi,  flinging  her- 
self on  the  ground  before  Christian,  clasped  her  arms 
around  his  knees  and  kissed  his  feet,  wetting  them 
with  tears  of  gratitude. 

That  night  Williams  cooked  and  ate  his  supper 
alone,  for  Talalu  and  Nahi  had  taken  shelter  in  the 
house  of  Tairoa-Maina,  the  Tubuaian  chief. 


CHAPTER   XXV 


THE    REVOLT    OF    TALALU 


FOR  three  days  nothing  happened.  The  people 
of  Pitcairn,  white  and  brown,  went  about  their 
daily  occupations  as  usual,  but  there  was  a  suppressed 
excitement  and  an  ominous  calmness  that  augured  ill 
for  the  future,  and  the  rift  between  the  two  parties — 
those  who  sided  with  Christian,  and  those  who  sup- 
ported Williams — widened  slowly  but  surely. 

Ever  since  the  day  of  the  quarrel  the  islanders  had 
been  sulky  and  suspicious  in  their  manner  to  all  the 
white  men  except  Christian  and  Smith.  Young, 
although  openly  declared  as  Christian's  taio  or  friend, 
they  regarded  with  distrust,  even  though  Alrema, 
doubtful  as  she  was  beginning  to  feel  of  her  husband's 
loyalty  to  herself,  strove  to  persuade  them  of  his  good- 
will towards  them. 

To  them  Christian  had  always  been  a  fair  and  j  ust 

man,   refusing  to  recognise    any  distinction   between 

them   and   his   white  comrades.      They    would  have 

fought  for  and  followed  him  to  the  death  had  occasion 

arisen  for  the  sacrifice. 

Tairoa-Maina  and  the  other  Tubuaians,  being  un- 
216 


THE  REVOLT  OF  TALALU  217 

married,  lived  by  themselves  in  a  separate  house,  and 
thither  went  Talalu  and  his  gentle  wife  for  refuge  for 
the  time  being  from  the  savage  Williams.  Fearing  to 
remain  much  longer  near  his  former  master,  Talalu 
determined  to  build  himself  a  new  house  among  the 
mountains  in  a  secluded  little  valley  about  half  a  mile 
lower  down  than  Christian's  cave.  Every  morning, 
axe  on  shoulder,  accompanied  by  Nahi,  he  set  out  to 
work. 

"  I  will  live  like  Kirisiani,"  he  said,  when  his 
countrymen  asked  him  why  he  desired  to  leave  them  ; 
"  even  as  he  lives  so  will  I.  These  white  men  are  bad 
masters  ;  no  longer  will  I  work  for  them  like  a  slave." 

On  the  fourth  morning  after  the  quarrel,  Williams 
rose  from  his  bunk  and  began  to  make  preparations 
for  his  breakfast.  The  fertility  of  the  island  was  such 
that  this  gave  him  little  labour.  In  his  house  were 
supplies  of  breadfruit,  yams,  and  bananas,  and  overhead 
on  the  cross-beams  hung  strings  of  dried  fish.  In 
addition  to  these  he  had  his  share  of  the  stores  from 
the  ^Bounty^  such  as  wine,  biscuit,  rice,  and  salted  pork, 
but  his  extravagance  had  left  him  but  little  of  the  meat, 
and  he  uttered  a  savage  curse  when  on  lifting  the  little 
two-gallon  wine  keg  he  found  it  empty.  To  procure 
more  meant  a  walk  to  the  storehouse,  some  distance 
away ;  and  before  he  could  get  the  wine  he  would  have 
to  ask  Quintal,  who,  by  common  consent,  was  in 
charge  of  all  the  stores  that  remained.  He  had  always 
been  accustomed  to  drink  wine  with  his  food,  and  the 
loss  of  it  annoyed  him. 

"  If  that  cursed  Talalu  had  been  here,"  he  thought. 


2i8  THE  MUTINEER 

"  this  wouldn't  have  happened.  What  right  had  the 
fellow  to  clear  out,  and  take  his  wife  with  him  too  ? 
And  the  breadfruit  and  yams  were  cold.  If  Nahi  were 
here  they  would  have  been  heated  for  him.  Curse 
them  both,  the  damned  copper-hided  savages." 

As  he  ate  he  worked  himself  into  a  state  of  savage 
fury.  What  right  had  that  fellow  to  have  such  a  hand- 
some woman  as  Nahi  for  his  wife  ?  If  he  were  out 
of  the  way  she  wouldn't  make  such  a  fuss  ;  would  no 
doubt  be  proud  to  become  the  wife  of  a  white  man. 
Damn  that  fine-talking  fellow,  Christian  !  Only  for 
him  the  thing  would  have  been  done.  Brown  and 
Mills  would  have  stood  by  if  Talalu  made  a  noise 
about  his  wife  being  taken.  By  God  !  he'd  stand  it 
no  longer.  He'd  bring  the  pair  of  them  back  to 
work  at  once. 

His  eye  caught  his  musket,  hanging  on  brackets 
over  his  bunk.  He  took  it  down,  loaded  it,  and  then 
walked  rapidly  away  in  the  direction  of  the  house 
occupied  by  Talalu  and  his  wife. 

With  murder  in  his  heart  he  reached  the  dwelling 
of  Tairoa-Maina.  Neither  the  chief  nor  his  two 
countrymen  were  visible,  but  Talalu  and  Nahi  were 
at  work  in  the  garden  at  the  back.  They  were  digging 
yams,  and  the  white  man  watched  them  in  sullen 
silence  for  a  few  minutes.  Every  movement  of  the 
woman's  graceful  figure  angered  him  against  her  hus- 
band. What  was  he  ?  A  slave  ;  a  cursed  savage.  A 
man  who  had  no  right  to  possess  a  beautiful  wife.  He 
w^ould  not  only  have  the  woman,  but  make  the  man 
work  for  him  as  well. 


THE  REVOLT  OF  TALALU  219 

Creeping  along  the  wall  of  coral  stones  that  en- 
closed the  garden,  he  reached  a  spot  not  twenty  yards 
from  them.  Then  he  stood  up  and  covered  the  man 
with  his  musket. 

"  Come  back  with  me,  you  two,"  he  called  fiercely, 
in  Tahitian  ;  "  if  you  don't  come  outside  at  once,  I'll 
kill  the  pair  of  you." 

Nahi,  with  heart  full  of  love,  threw  herself  before 
her  husband,  but  Talalu  said  something  to  her  in 
a  low  voice,  and  she  turned  and  faced  the  white 
man. 

"  Even  as  thou  wilt,  master,"  replied  Talalu  quietly, 
and  taking  Nahi's  hand  he  came  outside  the  wall. 

With  his  gun  over  his  shoulder  the  white  man 
followed  them,  triumphantly  smiling  to  himself  at 
this  proof  of  his  power  of  command. 

Very  quietly  they  walked  before  him,  till  they 
reached  his  house,  then  entered  it,  and  Nahi  seated 
herself  upon  the  matted  floor. 

Williams  stood  in  the  doorway  for  a  moment, 
regarding  them  with  a  smile  of  victory.  He  intended 
to  let  them  feel  their  position  at  once. 

"I've  a  damned  good  mind  to  give  you  a  lacing. 
Mister  Talalu,"  he  said  in  English,  "  but  I'll  put  it 
off  for  a  bit  and  give  you  another  chance.  But  I 
want  something  to  eat.  You,  Nahi,  go  to  Kawintali 
and  ask  him  for  some  rice  and  wine  and  salted  meat ; 
and  you,  Talalu " 

He  never  spoke  again.  The  Tahitian  sprang  upon 
him  like  a  tiger,  seized  his  throat  with  both  hands,  and 
squeezing  his  windpipe,   forced   him  to    the  ground. 


220  THE  MUTINEER 

For  a  minute  they  struggled  fiercely,  but  the  white 
man,  though  strong  and  active,  was  but  as  a  child  in 
the  giant's  grasp.  They  swayed  to  and  fro  a  little, 
and  then  Williams  lay  upon  the  ground  with  the 
brown  man's  knee  upon  his  chest,  making  feeble 
efforts  to  free  himself  from  the  grasp  of  death. 

Presently  he  ceased  to  struggle,  and  was  only  con- 
scious enough  to  know  that  all  hope  was  gone  and 
his  time  was  come.  One  glance  from  his  bloodshot 
eyes  into  the  death-dealing  face  of  the  man  above  him 
told  him  that. 

For  a  little  while  the  Tahitian  relaxed  his  hold. 
Beside  him,  her  eyes  dilated  with  triumphant  hatred, 
Nahi  bent  over  the  prostrate  figure,  all  the  bitterness 
of  the  past  reflected  in  her  dark  face.  She  had  watched 
the  struggle  with  a  sense  of  victory.  Who  in  the  old 
days  at  Matavai  could  vie  with  Talalu  in  wrestling  ? 
And  when  she  saw  the  huge  form  of  her  husband  bear 
the  slighter  figure  of  their  joint  oppressor  to  the  earth, 
she  laughed. 

With  the  foam  of  the  agony  of  death  flecking  his 
lips,  and  breathing  in  awful,  fitful  gasps,  Williams  lay 
before  them,  one  hand  of  Talalu  still  gripping  his 
throat.  The  musket  lay  upon  the  floor  beside  the 
men.  WiUiams  had  carried  it  at  full  cock,  and  the 
priming  had  been  spilt  when  he  dropped  it  to  meet 
the  onslaught  of  Talalu. 

Still  keeping  his  hand  upon  the  sailor's  throat  Talalu 
turned  to  his  wife. 

"  Take  thou  the  powder  horn  and  prime  the  gun," 
he  said. 


THE  REVOLT  OF  TALALU      221 

She  took  the  horn  from  the  peg  upon  which  it  hung 
and  did  as  he  told  her. 

"  Now  put  the  end  of  the  gun  to  this  dog's 
temple." 

She  dropped  upon  one  knee  and  pressed  the  muzzle 
of  the  gun  to  Williams's  dark  forehead. 

"  Now  pull  the  little  piece  of  iron,"  said  Talalu, 
"and  let  his  black  soul  depart  unto  the  land  of  evil 
spirits." 

There  was  a  flash  and  the  heavy  musket-ball  dashed 
out  the  wretched  man's  brains,  ploughed  through  the 
matted  floor,  and  scattered  the  coral  pebbles  in  a  white 
shower  against  the  furthest  side  of  the  house.  Then 
Talalu,  with  bloodied  right  hand,  rose  to  his  feet  and 
stood  regarding  the  body  of  his  enemy. 

Picking  up  the  lifeless  form  of  Williams,  the  Tahi- 
tian  motioned  to  his  wife  to  follow,  and  walked 
towards  the  clifi^s  to  the  same  place  where,  a  few 
months  before,  he  had  seen  the  wife  of  the  dead 
man  fall. 

Standing  on  the  jagged  cliff  edge,  he  looked  down. 
Far  below  him  lay  the  rough,  pebbly  beach  upon  which 
Faito  had  fallen  and  dyed  the  stones  with  her  blood. 
Then  he  raised  the  white  man  high  in  his  mighty  arms 
and  cast  him  over  with  a  bitter  curse. 

"Lie  there,  thou  who  slew  thy  wife  with  cruel 
words,  and  would  have  stolen  mine,"  he  cried,  as  he 
dashed  the  body  upon  the  stones. 

He  looked  down  a  while  longer  at  his  dead  enemy, 
and  then,  taking  Nahi's  hand  in  his  own,  turned 
homewards. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 


NAHI  S    MESSAGE 


THE  report  of  the  gun  which  killed  Talalu's 
oppressor  was  heard  by  all  who  happened  to  be 
in  their  houses  at  the  time.  Each  thought  it  was  but 
a  shot  fired  at  some  ocean  bird  winging  its  way  sea- 
ward from  one  of  the  many  islands  rookeries,  and  no 
one  imagined  that  it  was  the  beginning  of  a  fatal 
and  bloody  epoch  in  the  history  of  their  island 
home. 

But  Talalu,  as  he  returned  with  his  wife  by  his 
side,  knew  that  his  deed  would  bring  forth  great 
things  in  the  near  future,  and  set  himself  to  prepare 
for  whatever  might  happen. 

Half-way  between  the  cliffs  and  his  own  dwelling, 
he  stopped  and  spoke  to  Nahi. 

"  Hasten,  oh  pearl  of  my  heart,  to  the  houses  of 
all  our  countrymen  and  to  that  of  Tairoa-Maina  the 
Tubuaian,  and  bid  them  come  to  me.  And  this  shalt 
thou  say  to  them  :  *  Talalu  sendeth  greeting  and  saith 
that  "  The  sun  hath  risen  a  bloody  red  ;  and  the  white 
men  will  seek  for  revenge  for  what  hath  been  done." 


NAHI'S  MESSAGE  223 

Talalu  saith  also  "The  liand  to  the  club,  for  death 
Cometh  swiftly  and  suddenly  to  men  unprepared."'" 

"  Oh  husband  with  the  strong  hand  and  brave 
heart,  why  should'st  thou  fear  ?  The  white  men  are 
just,  and  will  not  harm  thee  for  killing  the  Iron-worker, 
that  man  of  evil  heart  and  cruel  will.  If  I  give 
this  message  of  thine,  will  not  they  think  that  all  the 
men  of  our  race  are  plotting  to  slay  them  P " 

The  giaiit  Tahitian  placed  his  bloodstained  hand 
upon  his  wife's  shoulder.  "  Do  as  I  bid  thee.  I 
tell  thee  the  white  men  will  not  forgive  me  the  death 
of  the  Iron-worker.  And  it  is  well  that  we  be 
prepared  for  their  wrath." 

"  Nay,"  pleaded  Nahi,  "surely  Kirisiani  and  Etuati 
and  Simetii  are  our  friends." 

"It  may  be  so,"  answered  Talalu  bitterly.  "Who 
can  tell  ?  Hast  thou  not  seen  that  they  have  no  faith 
in  each  other  ?  Dost  thou  not  know  that  Etuati, 
whom  I  once  thought  the  true  taio  of  Kirisiani, 
hath  spoken  words  of  love  to  Mahina  his  wife  ?  " 

"  That  is  but  the  custom  of  our  country."  2 

Talalu  interrupted — "  Thou  dost  not  know,  Nahi, 
that  this  our  custom  of  taio  is  held  in  abhorrence  by 
men  of  chiefs  rank  and  blood  in  Peretane,  such  as 
Etuati  and  Kirisiani.  Often  hath  Kirisiani  told  me, 
when  speaking  of  the  customs  of  white  men,  that  for 
a  man  to  cast  the  eye  of  desire  upon  the  wife  of  his 
friend  is  counted  shame." 

»  Smith. 

-  Of  the  privileges  extended  by  the  Tahitian  female  to  the  taio  or 
sworn  friend  of  the  husband  or  male  relative  the  less  said  the  better. 


224  THE  MUTINEER 

She  bent  her  head  in  mute  obedience  to  her  husband's 
will.  Surely  Talalu  her  husband,  who  was  for  ever 
talking  to  the  white  men  of  the  customs  of  their 
country,  knew  what  was  right. 

So  she  sped  quickly  away,  first  to  the  house  of 
I  Tairoa-Maina,    and    there    told    the    Tubuaians    of 

Williams'  death  and  gave  her  husband's  message. 

Without  waiting  to  be  questioned,  she  added — 
"  And  see,  oh  men  of  Tubuai,  that  ye  bring  with  ye 
guns  and  powder  and  lead  ;  for  even  as  my  husband 
sayeth  the  sun  hath  risen  a  bloody  red." 

Then  leaving  the  wondering  and  excited  Tu- 
buaians she  went  to  the  hut  of  the  Tahitians  and  gave 
the  same  warning.  As  she  passed  from  house  to  house 
the  wives  of  the  white  men  saw  her  and  sought  to 
question  her,  but  she  evaded  them  and  disappeared 
among  the  boscage  of  the  mountain  forest  towards  the 
dwelling  of  Mahina  and  her  husband. 

Through  the  open  doorway  of  the  house  she  saw 
the  figures  of  Alrema  and  Mahina.  They  were 
seated  together  preparing  their  morning  meal,  and 
Christian's  two  children  played  beside  them. 

Panting  with  excitement,  Nahi  threw  herself  upon 
the  couch  at  the  further  end  of  the  room  and  asked 
for  a  drink.  Alrema  opened  a  young  coconut  and 
and  brought  it  to  her. 

"  Why  dost  thou  breathe  so  hard,  my  friend  ? " 
she  said  with  a  laugh.  "  Drink  and  then  come  eat 
with  us." 

Nahi  drank,  but  refused  to  eat.  "  'Tis  well  that  I 
have  met  thee  here,  Alrema." 


NAHI'S  MESSAGE  225 

Something  in  her  face  made  them  rise  quickly  and 
asked  what  brought  her. 

She  laughed  nervously.  "  Listen  thou,  Alrema,  wife 
of  Etuati,  and  thou  Mahina,  wife  of  Kirisiani  the 
chief.     My  husband  hath  slain  the  Iron-worker." 

Mahina,  with  a  cry  of  fear,  clasped  her  infant  in 
her  arms. 

"Aye,  he  slew  him  with  his  own  gun,  because  he 
sought  to  take  me.  And  when  the  fire  leapt  from 
the  mouth  of  the  gun,  and  the  lead  dashed  out  his 
brains,  Talalu  took  up  his  body  and  carried  it  upon 
his  shoulders  to  the  cliffs  and  cast  it  upon  the  stones 
where  Faito  died.  And  this  message  hath  my 
husband  sent  to  the  men  of  Tahiti  and  Tubuai 
*  The  sun  hath  risen  a  bloody  red  ;  be  prepared.'  " 

The  two  others  exchanged  a  quick  responsive 
glance  of  alarm,  but  Nahi,  excited  as  she  was,  did 
not  notice  it. 

"  But  thou  must  not  tell  Tahinia,  nor  Malama,  nor 
Lunalio,  nor  any  of  the  women  who  have  white 
husbands.  Even  of  thee,  friends  of  my  heart,  was  I 
frightened,  but  I  remembered  that  thy  husbands  have 
ever  been  of  kind  hearts  to  us  of  Tahiti.  Did  not 
thine,  Alrema,  and  thine,  Mahina,  and  the  husband  of 
Terere  seek  to  save  me  from  the  dog  whom  my 
husband  hath  slain  ?  And  for  that  shall  no  harm 
come  to  them  or  to  thee." 

Mahina,  with  a  terrified  glance  at  the  exultant  face 

of  Nahi,  turned  appealingly  to  Alrema.     What  should 

she   do   to   warn    Christian  ?     He    was   in    his  cave. 

Perhaps  in  his  lonely  morning  walk  along  the  cliffs  he 

16 


226  THE  MUTINEER 

might  meet  some  of  her  countrymen  who,  never 
thinking  of  all  that  he  had  done  for  their  welfare, 
might  shoot  or  spear  him. 

Fearful  for  their  husbands,  Mahina  and  Alrema  saw 
the  lithe  figure  of  Nahi  glide  away  into  the  darkness 
from  Christain's  lonely  dwelling.  Despite  the  know- 
ledge that  Young  was  wavering  in  his  loyalty  to  her, 
his  wife  still  loved  him  passionately,  and  never  felt 
anything  but  friendship  for  Mahina  ;  so,  urging  her  to 
go  to  Christian  and  warn  him  of  the  impending 
trouble,  she  set  out  in  search  of  Young,  who  had 
gone  fishing  for  the  night.  And  Mahina,  leading 
one  child  by  the  hand  and  pressing  the  other  to  her 
bosom,  walked  quickly  along  the  rocky  path  towards 
the  cave. 

A  strange  silence  already  seemed  to  deaden  the  clear 
morning  air.  Soon  after  the  first  rosy  flush  of  dawn 
had  changed  the  grey  of  the  wooded  mountain  sides  to  a 
living  green,  Matthew  Quintal,  gun  in  hand,  came 
along  the  path  from  his  house  towards  the  cliffs, 
wondering  why  he  had  met  none  of  the  brown  men 
on  their  way  to  their  work  in  the  white  men's 
gardens.  He  was  going  towards  a  great  toa  tree 
which  grew  in  a  little  valley  near  Martin's  house, 
where  at  early  morning  many  frigate  birds  roosted, 
for  he  had  promised  Malama  to  shoot  some  for  her, 
and  wanted  Isaac  Martin  to  join  him. 

But  ere  he  came  in  sight  of  the  shipmate's  house 
Martin  met  him.  His  thin,  sallow  face  wore  an 
anxious  look,  and  to  Quintal's  surprise  he  carried  a 
pistol  and  cutlass  as  well  as  a  musket. 


NAHI'S  MESSAGE  227 

"  I  was  going  to  look  for  you,  Mat,"  he  said  ; 
"  there  is  something  in  the  wind.  One  of  the  Tahiti 
men  was  here  a  little  while  ago  telling  my  wife  that 
Talalu  had  killed  Jack  Williams.  Didn't  you  know 
it  ?  " 

"  No  !  "  replied  Quintal  with  a  startled  exclamation 
and  look  of  alarm.     "  What  had  we  better  do  ?  " 

"  Let  us  go  and  tell  the  others.  There's  going  to 
be  fighting,  I  can  see.  Every  one  of  those  fellows 
thinks  a  lot  of  Talalu,  and  as  far  as  I  can  make  out 
only  we  two  know  that  Williams  is  dead.  We'll 
find  them  all  working  at  Young's." 


CHAPTER  XXVII 


ALREMA  S   SONG 


YOUNG  was  building  a  new  storehouse  upon 
his  ground,  and  thither  went  the  two  men.  As 
soon  as  they  emerged  from  the  forest  path  upon 
Young's  clearing  they  could  see  him  with  Smith  and 
Brown  at  work. 

None  of  the  Tahitians  had  appeared  to  assist  them, 
and  the  three  men  were  discussing  the  cause  of  their 
absence.  Young,  who  had  been  fishing  in  the  'Bounty's 
boat  all  night  off  the  south  end  of  the  island,  was  in  a 
bad  temper.  He  had  been  obliged  to  land  at  an 
inconvenient  spot  through  the  sea  rising  suddenly, 
and  on  returning  home  just  after  daylight  found  that 
Alrema  was  away.  Such  an  unusual  occurrence 
mystified  and  irritated  him  ;  for  how  could  he  know 
that  the  loving  girl  had  waited  at  the  usual  landing- 
place  in  Bounty  Bay  till  past  daylight,  and  then 
returned  home,  unhappy  and  anxious  at  the  absence 
of  her  husband  ? 

But  as  Quintal  and  Martin  came  walking  quickly 
along  towards  Young  and  his   companions,  Alrema 


228 


ALREMA'S  SONG  229 

appeared  on  the  path,  far  in  advance  of  them.  She 
was  followed  closely  by  the  wives  of  two  of  the 
Tahitians,  who  were  plainly  watching  her  move- 
ments. 

"  Beware,  Alrema,"  said  one  of  them,  "  we  know 
why  thou  hast  come  here.  Talalu  hath  done  no 
wrong,  and  our  husbands  will  stand  by  him  if  it 
Cometh  to  the  shedding  of  blood." 

*'  Aye,"  fiercely  said  the  other,  a  short,  powerful 
woman,  whose  long  hair,  wetted  with  the  morning 
dew  that  had  fallen  on  her  head  as  she  came  through 
the  narrow  forest  path,  hung  black  and  lustreless 
upon  her  brown,  naked  shoulders,  "  and  I,  Toaa,  will 
strike  this  knife  into  thy  heart  if  thou  goest  nearer  to 
the  white  ^men,"  and  she  showed  Alrema  a  short 
broad-bladed  dagger. 

"  Ye  fools,"  answered  Alrema  contemptuously, 
"  can  I  not  labour  in  my  husband's  garden  without 
listening  to  thy  silly  threats  ?  What  doth  it  concern 
me  that  Talalu  hath  killed  the  Iron-worker  ?  Stay  me 
not,  I  tell  thee.  I  have  but  come  to  dig  yams  for  our 
morning  meal." 

Without  further  words  she  entered  the  walled 
enclosure,  apparently  taking  no  heed  of  the  three 
white  men  who  were  now  talking  earnestly  together. 
She  meant  to  tell  them  of  their  danger,  but  how  to  do 
so  with  the  two  women  close  beside  her  she  knew  not. 

"  Here,  you  two,  come  and  help  Alrema  to  dig 
yams,"  called  out  Young  angrily  in  English  to  the 
other  women .  "  I'll  make  some  of  you  work  for  me 
to-day." 


230  THE  MUTINEER 

Fearing  to  disobey,  they  silently  followed  Alrema, 
and  began  to  assist  her  in  her  labours  ;  and  as  they 
worked  Alrema  sang.  Sweet,  clear,  and  loud  her 
voice  rang  out  in  the  morning  air,  and  the  white  men 
looked  at  one  another  in  surprise,  for  at  the  end  of  the 
first  verse  she  added  in  English  another  line. 

"  Listen  to  my  singing,  white  men." 

The  two  Tahitian  women  near  her  looked  up 
suspiciously.  Unlike  Alrema,  who  now  spoke  the 
white  men's  language  with  perfect  fluency,  they 
barely  understood  a  dozen  words  of  English.  Still 
they  kept  close  and  Toaa  watched  Young's  wife 
narrowly.  With  apparent  composure  she  went  on 
with  her  song — one  of  the  old  Tahitian  love  songs, 
half  recitative  but  full  of  melody,  and  presently 
noticed  that  Young  and  the  other  men  had  drawn 
nearer,  and  were  listening,  though  with  apparent  un- 
concern . 

The  second  verse  told  how  a  girl  of  Raiatea, 
pursuing  a  phantom  lover,  journeyed  over  sea  and  land 
moon  after  moon,  till  she  sank  faint  and  dying  under 
a  grove  of  coconut  trees  on  the  beach  of  an  un- 
known land,  whither  her  quest  had  led  her. 


"  So  she  lay  there  faint  and  dying  ; 
Bloodied  were  her  cinnet  sandals 
With  her  journey  long  and  weary  ; 
And  her  eyes  were  raised  above  her 
At  the  young  nuts,  thick  in  clusters. 
Growing  close,  yet  far  beyond  her  ; 
For  her  hands,  too  weak  to  reach  them, 
Bruised  and  bleeding 
Lay  upon  her  aching  bosom." 


ALREMA'S  SONG  231 

With  a  swift  glance  at  the  white  men  she  changed 
into  English. 

"Listen,  white  men,  to  my  singing  ; 
Dead  is  Williams,  Iron-worker ; 
He  was  killed  at  early  morning. 
Know  you  not  the  man  who  slew  him  ?  " 

"  By  God  !     Do  you  hear  that  ?  "  said  Young. 

"  Sh  !  wait  a  bit,  she'll  tell  us  more  presently," 
whispered  Smith  ;  "can't  you  see  she's  afraid  of  the 
other  women  ? " 

Again  Alrema's  bird-like  notes  went  back  into 
Tahitian.  Striking  her  spade  into  the  ground  as  she 
sang — 

"  And  the  heavens  swirled  about  her, 
With  her  pain,  and  thirst,  and  hunger  ; 
But  her  heart  kept  calling,  calling, 
For  the  lover  who  had  mocked  her." 

She  raised  the  end  of  a  yam  from  the  rich  black 
soil,  turned  round  and  placed  it  in  a  basket  behind 
her  ;  then  her  voice,  quivering  yet  strong,  took  up 
in  English  the  thread  of  warning  to  the  listening 
white  men. 

"  Do  you  hear  me  ?     Understand  me  ? 
Go  away  and  get  your  muskets  ; 
All  the  brown  men  now  are  arming, 
Arming  so  that  they  may  kill  you  ; 
Go  away  and  warn  the  others." 

"  Thou  art  a  vain  fool,"  said  the  woman  Toaa  to 
her  in  a  tone  of  contempt;  "dost  thou  think  to 
charm  the  ears  of  our  masters  with  thy  croaking 
voice  ?  " 


232  THE  MUTINEER 

Alrema  tried  to  laugh  good-naturedly,  and  again 
went  on  with  the  Tahitian  love-song.  The  women, 
however,  she  feared  suspected  her,  and  she  sang  the 
next  verse  quickly,  while  Young,  Brown,  and  Smith 
with  bated  breath  listened  for  her  next  words  in 
English. 

"  See  these  women  working  with  me, 
They  suspect  me,  they  will  kill  me, 
If  they  know  I  give  you  warning. 
Go  away  and  tell  the  others, 
Leave  me  here  to  follow  quickly." 

"By  heavens,  that's  enough  !  "  whispered  Young  to 
his  companions.  "  Let  us  get  away  as  quickly  as 
possible.  My  wife's  warning  is  clear  enough.  We 
must  go  and  tell  the  others." 

"Here's  Quintal  and  Martin  coming  down  the 
ridge  now,"  said  Brown.  "They  seem  to  know 
what's  up,  too." 

"Go  and  meet  them,"  replied  Young  hurriedly, 
"  and  tell  them  to  wait  till  Smith  and  I  come.  We 
must  not  let  these  women  know  that  we  have  any 
suspicion  of  what  is  wrong ;  listen,  do  you  hear 
that  ?  " 

Alrema  was  singing  again  in  English,  and  telling 
them  she  was  sure  the  two  women  had  been  sent  to 
get  powder  and  ball  from  Williams'  house. 

"  Off  you  go.  Brown,  but  don't  walk  too  quickly. 
Tell  Quintal  and  Martin  that  Smith  and  1  will  be 
with  them  in  a  minute  or  two.  Then  slip  through 
the  breadfruit  grove  to  Williams'  house,  and  get  all 
his  ammunition." 


ALREMA'S  SONG  233 

Presently  Alrema  saw  with  satisfaction  that  Brown 
was  sauntering  away,  and  as  soon  as  he  was  out  ot 
sight  Young  and  Smith  came  over  to  where  the 
women  were  working. 

"  We  are  going  to  McCoy's  house,"  said  he, 
addressing  Ah'ema  quietly  ;  "you  can  stay  here  and 
cook  us  some  yams."  Then  with  sudden  severity  he 
turned  to  Toaa  and  the  other  woman.  "As  for  you 
two,  stay  here  and  dig  till  we  return,  or  'twill  be 
worse  for  your  backs." 

They  gave  him  sullen  glances  in  reply  and  muttered 
acquiescence.  Smith  and  Young  left  the  garden  and 
went  to  join  Quintal  and  Martin,  but  the  moment 
they  were  out  of  the  women's  sight  they  ran,  and 
soon  reached  the  other  white  men. 

For  some  minutes  the  three  women  worked  on  in 
silence.  Alrema  picked  up  her  basket  of  yams,  and 
was  moving  towards  the  house  when  Toaa  called  her 
back. 

"  Whither  goest  thou  ? "  she  asked. 

"Oh  fool  and  dull  of  hearing,"  Alrema  replied 
coolly.  "  Didst  you  not  hear  my  husband  tell  me  to 
cook  these  yams  ?     I  haste  to  do  his  bidding." 

"  Thou  liest,"  said  Toaa  fiercely  ;  "  thou  hast  told 
him  something  in  thy  cunning  song,"  and  she  sprang 
at  her,  knife  in  hand. 

But  Alrema,  by  an  agile  movement,  escaped  the 
savage  thrust,  and,  seeing  that  it  was  now  too  late  for 
concealment,  leapt  over  the  low  stone  wall  of  the 
garden  and  fled  swiftly  after  her  husband. 

With  Young  leading  the  way,  the  three  white  men 


234  THE  MUTINEER 

ran  quickly  towards  the  houses  of  the  other  Europeans. 
In  a  few  minutes  they  were  overtaken  by  Brown,  who 
reported  that  Williams'  house  was  in  the  possession  of 
Talalu  and  his  friends,  and  consequently  he  had  not 
dared  attempt  to  enter  it.  By  the  time  they  reached 
the  summit  of  the  rise  overlooking  the  rest  of  the 
houses,  they  were  joined  by  Alrema,  who  had  cleverly 
returned  unobserved  to  her  husband's  house,  fearing 
that  Young  had  not  secured  all  the  arms  there.  This, 
however,  he  had  done. 

"  Where  is  Christian  ? "  asked  Young,  as  they 
gained  the  top  of  the  hill  and  stopped  to  draw  breath 
for  a  moment. 

"In  his  cave,"  answered  Martin,  "ibut  it's  no  use 
waiting  for  him.  Alrema  says  that  Mahina  has  gone 
to  call  him.  He'll  be  with  us  presently.  What  are 
we  to  do  ?  " 

There  was  a  hurried  consultation,  and  it  was  quickly 
resolved  that  Talalu  must  be  taken  prisoner  and 
punished. 

As  they  talked  they  were  joined  by  McCoy, 
Christian,  and  Mahina.  Christian  unconsciously 
assumed  the  leadership,  and  after  deciding  upon  their 
plan  of  action  they  proceeded  in  a  body  towards 
Williams'  house,  determined  at  all  risks  to  quell  the 
revolt  which  was  threatening  their  safety. 


CHAPTER    XXVIII 
"  HIS  heart's  desire  " 

IN  less  than  half  an  hour  the  white  men  reached 
the  low  stone  wall  enclosing  Williams'  house  and 
garden,  and  saw  that  the  door  of  his  dwelling  was 
closed  ;  but  the  two  unglazed  windows  were  opened, 
and  from  them  half  a  dozen  brown,  excited  faces 
peered  out  upon  the  Europeans.  Each  native  held  a 
musket  at  full  cock,  along  the  barrel  of  which  his  eye 
glanced. 

Suddenly  Christian  stopped,  and  help  up  his  hand  to 
the  white  men  who  followed  him.  Then  grounding 
his  musket  he  spoke. 

"  I  have  come  with  you,  because  on  the  spur  of  the 
moment  I  thought  it  my  duty  to  make  common 
cause  with  men  of  my  own  colour  against  a  common 
danger.  I  forgot  that  this  man  Williams  deserved  his 
fate.  He  was  a  thorough-paced  scoundrel,  and  has 
met,  I  have  no  doubt,  his  just  deserts.  Therefore,  I 
will  take  no  part  in  this  aflfeir  ;  settle  it  yourselves. 
I  leave  it  to  you  to  consider,  before  you  harm  Talalu, 
235 


236  THE  MUTINEER 

what  you  may  bring  upon  yourselves  by  becoming  his 
murderers." 

Walking  away  from  his  surprised  and  angry  fellow- 
countrymen,  he  sat  down  quietly  upon  the  wall  and 
waited  to  see  what  would  happen. 

"  Very  well,"  said  Edward  Young  contemptuously, 
"  if  you  won't  stand  by  us  in  a  matter  like  this  we 
must  do  without  you.  For  the  sake  of  my  wife  and 
child  I  will  not  let  this  fellow  escape  punishment. 
You,  it  is  easy  to  see,  care  naught  for  yours,"  and  he 
glanced  quickly  at  Mahina,  who  stood  near. 

"Right,  Mr.  Young,"  said  Quintal ;  "you  lead  us 
and  we'll  follow." 

Telling  the  rest  of  the  white  men  to  stand  back. 
Young  advanced  close  to  the  house  and  called  to 
Talalu  that  he  wished  to  speak  to  him. 

The  heavy  wooden  door  swung  open,  and  the 
gigantic  figure  of  the  Tahitian  faced  the  white  man. 
He  was  stripped  to  the  waist  and  held  a  musket  in  his 
hand,  but,  seeing  that  Young's  piece  lay  on  the  ground, 
he  put  his  down  also. 

"  What  is  it  that  ye  seek,  Etuati  ?  "  he  asked  quietly. 

"We  come  to  seek  thee  ;  thou  hast  killed  the  Iron- 
worker, and  we  will  see  justice  done.  No  one,  white 
or  brown,  must  slay  his  fellow-man  and  be  allowed  to 
escape,"  answered  Young  quickly. 

"  He  sought  to  rob  me  of  my  wife.  Am  I  a  slave 
to  suffer  such  a  wrong  as  that  ?  " 

"  Let  us  shoot  the  beggar  !  "  called  out  Martin  and 
Brown  together,  and  Mills,  too,  urged  Young  to  stand 
aside  and  let  them  end  the  matter  at  once. 


i 


"HIS  HEART'S  DESIRE"  237 

But  Young  begged  them  to  have  patience.  He 
wished  to  avoid  unnecessary  bloodshed. 

Talalu  listened  quietly,  his  eyes  fixed  upon  Christian, 
who  sat  with  his  chin  upon  his  hand,  regarding  the 
two  parties  with  an  aspect  of  utter  indifference. 

"  Listen,"  said  the  Tahitian  to  Young,  "  so  that 
there  may  be  peace  between  the  white  men  and  the 
brown,  I  swear  by  the  god  of  the  white  men,  and  by 
the  god  Oro,  to  do  in  this  matter  as  Kirisiani  wills. 
I  know  that  he  is  a  just  man  and  will  do  no  wrong 
either  to  me  or  to  thee." 

"  Be  it  so,"  answered  Young,  "  speak  to  him  and 
tell  him  this  ;  for  but  a  little  time  ago  he  told  me  he 
cared  naught  for  any  of  us." 

He  fell  back  to  the  white  men,  and  told  them  of 
the  Tahitian's  proposition.  To  it  they  all  consented, 
feeling  sure  that,  however  much  Christian  kept  him- 
self aloof  from  them,  he  would  never  actually  take 
sides  against  them  with  the  islanders. 

"Very  well,"  said  Christian  coldly,  when  Young 
asked  him  to  speak  to  Talalu.  "  As  I  have  said,  I 
will  take  no  side,  but  if  Talalu  wants  my  opinion  I 
will  give  it.  Whether  he  acts  upon  it  or  not  will  not 
trouble  me."  He  walked  through  the  little  gateway 
up  the  path  to  the  door  of  the  house,  but  half  way  he 
stopped ;  for  the  big  Tahitian  with  hands  outstretched 
advanced  towards  him. 

"  Thou  art  a  just  man,  Kirisiani,"  he  said,  "as  just 
as  Tuti,  and  I,  Talalu,  son  of  Totaro,  have  no  fear  of 
thee.  This  do  I  say — mine  was  the  hand  that  slew 
the  Iron-worker  ;  and  thou  art  a  just  man,  and  will 


238  THE  MUTINEER 

not  let  these  thy  countrymen  kill  me  because  I  did 
that  which  was  right." 

For  a  moment  or  two  Christian  hesitated,  and  then 
with  a  bitter  laugh  replied  in  a  cold  voice — "Thou 
foolish  man,  dost  thou  think  my  countrymen  care  for 
thy  wrongs  ?  Thou  hast  killed  their  comrade — a 
man  who  was  useful  to  them  because  of  his  skill. 
Thou  art  but  a  savage  ;  thy  skin  is  brown,  theirs  is 
white  ;  and  in  their  eyes  he  of  the  brown  skin  hath 
neither  rights  or  wrongs.  Therefore,  oh  man  with 
the  brown  skin,  who  hast  no  heart  to  feel,  and  no  soul 
to  suffer,  lay  down  thy  weapon  and  feel  the  justice  of 
these  thy  masters." 

The  mocking  bitterness  and  contempt  which  rang 
through  his  voice  cut  the  faithful  Talalu  to  the 
heart. 

"Is  this  thy  justice,  Kirisiani  ?  Thou,  the  husband 
of  Mahina  !  Thou,  for  whom  we  of  the  brown  skins 
and  loving  hearts  would  lay  down  our  lives  !  Thou 
of  whom  Nahi  my  wife  said,  when  I  cast  the  Iron- 
worker over  the  cliffs,  *  Kirisiani  is  thy  friend  and  will 
stand  to  thee  ! '  Hast  thou  no  other  answer  for  me 
but  this  ? " 

^'  Talk  to  me  no  more,"  Christian  replied  passion- 
ately ;  "  I  care  neither  for  thee,  nor  for  these  white 
men,  nor  for  myself.  Do  as  thou  wilt — it  matters 
not  to  me  ;  so  that  none  of  ye  trouble  me,  I  care  not. 
Farewell,"  and  with  angry  impatience  he  turned  away 
and  was  soon  lost  to  view.  Mahina,  with  her  infant 
in  her  arms,  quickly  followed,  endeavouring  to  over- 
take him. 


"HIS  HEART'S  DESIRE"  239 

Then  Talalu,  with  his  hands  clasped  together  and 
downcast  head,  returned  to  the  house. 

"Give  me  my  gun,"  he  said  sadly, to  Tairoa-Maina. 

Holding  the  weapon  up  over  his  head,  he  turned  to 
Young,  who  had  by  this  time  with  the  help  of  Smith 
succeeded  in  quieting  the  most  turbulent  of  his 
comrades. 

Throwing  his  musket  at  Young's  feet  the  gigantic 
Tahitian  spoke — 

"  Do  with  me  as  it  seems  best  to  thee.  I  swore  by 
Oro  my  god  that  Kirisiani  should  decide  between  us. 
But  his  heart  has  turned  to  stone.  Do  with  me  as 
you  will." 

Something  in  the  despairing  accents  of  Talalu's 
voice  touched  even  the  callous  heart  of  Young,  and 
he  could  not  help  admiring  the  loyalty  to  his  word 
which  made  the  Tahitian,  savage  as  he  was,  surrender 
so  quietly. 

"  This  is  well,"  he  said,  picking  up  the  man's 
musket  from  the  sward.  "  Come  with  me  ;  I  promise 
that  no  harm  shall  befall  thee  till  this  thing  that  thou 
hast  done  hath  been  well  considered.  But  say  this  to 
thy  friends  in  the  house — if  before  the  sun  sets  they 
do  not  lay  down  their  arms  and  bring  them  to  my 
house,  I  will  kill  thee  with  my  own  hands." 

"  Tell  them  that  thyself,"  said  the  Tahitian  proudly  ; 
"  how  can  I,  a  man,  say  this  to  them  ?  " 

Advancing  to  the  house  Young  gave  the  natives  his 
warning,  but  ere  one  of  them  could  reply  Talalu 
sprang  to  his  side  with  a  haughty  gesture. 

"  Heed  him  not,  my  friends.     The  words  are  his, 


240  THE  MUTINEER 

not  mine.  I,  Talalu,  give  my  life  because  of  the 
oath  I  swore  to  Kirisiani,  who  hath  deserted  me. 
Am  I  a  dog  to  buy  my  life  from  these  white  men 
because  of  thy  friendship  for  me,  oh  men  of  Tahiti 
and  Tubuai  ?  If  I  die,  do  thou,  Tairoa-Maina,  friend 
of  my  heart,  take  Nahi  for  thy  wife." 

The  door  was  shut  again  with  a  cry  of  defiance, 
and  again  the  musket  barrels  protruded  through  the 
windows. 

"  Leave  them  alone  for  the  present,"  commanded 
Young ;  and  with  their  prisoner  walking  calmly  before* 
them,  the  white  men  marched  away. 

^  ^  ¥^  7^  ¥^ 

Clasping  her  child  to  her  bosom,  Mahina  followed 
her  husband  as  quickly  as  her  strength  would  permit. 
The  events  of  the  past  few  days  had  exhausted  her  in 
mind  and  body,  and  she  began  to  fear  her  husband's 
morbid  behaviour  was  turning  into  actual  madness. 
Thrice  as  she  caught  sight  of  him  in  the  rough  ascent 
of  the  rocky  path  had  she  called  his  name  and  asked 
him  to  stop,  but  he  seemed  to  take  no  heed.  At  last 
when  she  gained  the  summit  of  the  ridge  which  over- 
looked the  valley  wherein  his  house  stood,  she  saw 
him  standing,  his  gaunt  figure  silhouetted  against  the 
sky-line,  with  folded  arms,  and  head  sunk  upon  his 
chest.  As  she  came  near  he  seemed  to  be  asleep,  for 
he  made  no  sign  to  show  he  knew  of  her  presence. 

Setting  the  sleeping  child  gently  down  upon  a 
mossy  cleft  in  the  rock,  she  stepped  softly  to  him  and 
touched  his  arm. 

"Kirisiani,"  she  said,  panting  from   the  long  and 


"HIS  HEART'S  DESIRE"  241 

hurried  walk,  "  I  pray  thee,  come  home  to  thy  house 
to-night.     I  fear  to  be  alone,  so  far  from  thee." 

With  a  savage  oath,  and  the  light  of  madness 
gleaming  in  his  eyes,  he  thrust  her  rudely  away. 

With  a  despairing,  heart-broken  cry  she  staggered 
and  fell  upon  the  jagged  rocks,  and  Christian,  without 
even  looking  behind,  resumed  his  journey  to  his  cave. 

An  hour  later,  when  Mahina  awoke  to  the  con- 
sciousness of  her  misery,  she  was  alone  in  her  husband's 
house  with  her  head  pillowed  against  Edward  Young's 
bosom,  whilst  he  kissed  her  again  and  again. 

"  Thou  art  my  heart's  desire,"  he  said. 


>7 


CHAPTER   XXIX 

THE    TONGUE    OF    A    WOMAN 

DARKNESS  fell  on  the  lonely  island,  and  the 
muffled  roar  of  the  breakers  beating  against 
the  cliffs  of  Afita  was  the  only  sound  that  disturbed 
the  silence  of  the  night. 

In  the  big  living-room  of  Edward  Young's  house 
Talalu  sat  moodily  upon  a  mat  in  one  corner,  won- 
dering what  had  become  of  Nahi.  His  captors,  at 
Young's  request,  had  not  bound  their  prisoner,  but 
had  left  Alrema  on  guard  over  him  with  a  loaded 
musket  and  pistol. 

"  Where  was  Nahi  ?  "  he  wondered.     "  Why  was 

she,  the  faithful,  loving  wife,  not  with  him  now  ?  " 

Alrema,  by  Young's  direction,  had  given  him  food, 

but  it  lay  beside  him   untasted.     Young  himself  was 

absent  ;  for  soon  after  bringing  Talalu  to  the  house 

he  had  quietly  left  again.     Alrema  sat  at  the  open 

doorway,  her  pale,  handsome  face  wearing  a  disturbed 

expression.     Where  was  her  husband  ?     Why  was  he 

so  eager   to  get  away  at  such   a  time  as  this,  when 

243 


THE  TONGUE  OF  A  WOMAN  243 

men's  minds  were  disturbed  and  the  scent  of  blood 
was  in  the  air !  But  for  her  proud  and  haughty 
nature  she  would  have  watched  his  movements,  and 
would  now  have  gone  in  search  of  him.  But 
Mahina's  soft,  gentle  face  rose  before  her,  with  her 
pleading  eyes,  and  Alrema  lowered  her  head  and  wept 
silently.  How  could  she  kill  Mahina,  who  had  ever 
been  her  friend,  and  who  had  eyes  and  heart  for  Kiri- 
siani  alone  ?  And  yet — ah  !  she  could  think  no 
longer.  Perhaps  her  husband  was  gone  elsewhere, 
and  Mahina  slept  alone  with  her  children. 

The  long,  long  hours  passed  slowly  away  till  mid- 
night ;  then  a  step  crunched  upon  the  pebbly  path, 
and  Young  entered  the  house.  His  face  was  calm, 
but  Alrema  saw  that  his  dark  eyes  burned  with 
unusual  brilliancy. 

As  he  seated  himself,  Smith  came  in. 

"  Mr.  Young,"  he  said,  "the  others  have  just  held 
a  sort  of  meeting  at  Brown's  house,  and  are  now 
coming  up  to  demand  that  we  wait  no  longer  for  the 
Tahitians  to  surrender.  They  say  their  lives  are  in 
danger  while  the  natives  have  arms  in  their  possession. 
I  have  tried  to  persuade  them  to  leave  the  matter  to 
you,  but  they  won't  listen." 

"  All  right,"  answered  the  other  quietly  ;  and 
Alrema  noticed  that  he  spoke  somewhat  brokenly,  as 
if  out  of  breath.  "  I  can  do  no  more,  but  if  they 
insist  in  pursuing  this  quarrel  to  the  bitter  end,  I  must 
see  it  through  with  the  rest  of  you." 

Alrema  handed  him  a  young  coconut  to  drink. 
He  took  it  from  her  hand,  but   his  eyes  avoided  his 


244  THE  MUTINEER 

wife's  face.     Then,  taking  his  musket  and  putting  a 
pistol  in  his  belt,  he  spoke  to  Talalu. 

"  You  must  come  with  us,"  he  said,  not  unkindly 
to  the  Tahitian,  "  so  that  your  countrymen  may  see 
that  no  harm  hath  been  done  thee.  I  will  try  and 
reason  with  them."  Then,  leaving  Alrema  with  her 
child,  the  three  men  stepped  out  into  the  darkness  to 
meet  the  others. 


Nahi  had  not  deserted  her  husband  in  his  ex- 
tremity. While  he  sat  a  prisoner  in  Young's  house, 
wondering  why  she  had  not  come  near  him,  Nahi 
was  busy  with  her  tongue.  Since  nightfall  she  had 
been  in  Williams'  house  talking  to  her  countrymen, 
and  with  passionate  eloquence  stirring  their  hearts  to 
the  doing  of  a  great  deed  ;  and  the  Tahitians  and 
Tubuaians,  as  they  watched  her  flashing  eyes  sparkle 
and  glow  like  diamonds  in  the  faint  light  and  listened 
to  her  fiery  appeal,  shifted  uneasily  and  muttered  to 
one  another  in  low  tones. 

"  Why  dost  thou  urge  us  to  such  a  bloody  deed,  oh 
Nahi  ?  "  said  Manale,  a  short,  stout  man,  who,  with 
his  musket  upon  his  knees,  sat  cross-legged  on  the 
floor.  "  'Tis  not  for  blood  we  seek,  but  for  the  right 
to  live  and  work  for  ourselves,  and  no  longer  remain 
slaves.  Thou  art  but  a  woman,  and  shouldst  not 
urge " 


"  A  woman  ! "  and  she  clenched  her  hand  fiercely 
round  the  hilt  of  the  knife  she  held — "  a  woman,  yes. 
But  thou,  Manale — bulky  as  thou  art  in  body,  thy 


THE  TONGUE  OF  A  WOMAN  245 

heart  is  as  the  heart  of  a  tiny  fish.  Will  ye  five 
be  slaves  to  these  cruel  vi^hite  dogs  ?  Shame  on  ye 
all  !  Is  there  no  one  among  you  better  than  a 
Mahu  ?  "  I 

"  Nay,  insult  us  not,  Nahi,  with  such  bitter  w^ords," 
said  Tairoa-Maina  ;  "  we  are  men.  It  is  in  our  minds 
that  Kirisiani  will  help  us." 

She  laughed  bitterly.  "  Kirisiani !  He  whom  my 
husband  trusted  before  other  men — only  to  be  be- 
trayed !  He  has  turned  from  our  people,  and  cares 
not  if  his  countrymen  rid  themselves  of  us.  Death 
is  before  ye  all,  I  tell  thee.  Will  ye  let  these  white 
men  slay  ye  one  by  one  ?  Have  ye  not  guns  in  thy 
hands  ?  Five  pieces  of  iron,  and  death  lieth  within 
them,  ready  to  leap  out  with  flame  and  smoke.  Live 
and  be  slaves  !     Act  and  be  men  !  " 

She  ceased  ;  the  lamp  of  tui  tui  nuts  flickered, 
wavered  and  died  out,  and  darkness  fell  upon  them. 

"  Let  us  talk,"  said  Tairoa-Maina  in  a  whisper  to 
the  other  four. 

"  Aye,  talk,"  said  Nahi,  "  talk.  And  think  that 
even  now  my  husband  lies  dead  because  ye  have 
proved  cowards !  " 

Five  minutes  passed  ;  then  Nahi,  with  fierce  joy, 
saw  them  rise. 

"  Come  thou  and  see  us  act,"  said  Manale  to  her,  as 
he  touched  her  arm,  and  they  all  filed  out  in  silence. 

Young  and  Smith,  with  Talalu  walking  between 
them,  had   scarcely  gone  a  hundred   yards   from  the 

'  A  class  of  degraded  Tahitians,  now  happily  extinct,  who  affected 
the  dress  and  manners  of  women. 


246  THE  MUTINEER 

house  when  they  met  Quintal  and  McCoy  coming 
down  the  rugged  path  towards  Young's  dwelling. 

"  Mr.  Young,"  said  McCoy,  "  we  have  determined 
to  clap  a  stopper  on  this  mutiny  at  once.  We  can't 
let  these  fellows  take  charge  of  the  island  any  longer, 
and  we  want  you  to  come  along  with  us  and  surprise 
them  before  daybreak." 

"  Very  well,  I'm  agreeable.  But  at  the  same  time" 
— and  Young  laughed  ironically — "  it  does  me  good 
to  hear  you — or  any  of  us — talk  about  putting  down 
a  mutiny." 

"Call  it  by  any  name  you  like,"  said  McCoy, 
roughly.  "  But  it  won't  do  for  us  to  let  this  thing 
go  on.  We  came  to  you  because  we  know  you  won't 
leave  us  in  the  lurch,  like  Mr.  Christian  has." 

"  All  right  ;  lead  on.  Where  are  the  others  ? " 
said  Young. 

"  They've  gone  on  ahead  slowly  ;  we'll  overtake 
them  before  they  reach  the  house." 

Following  Young  in  Indian  file,  the  three  white 
men  and  the  Tahitian  walked  as  quickly  as  the  night 
would  permit  along  the  narrow  path  which  wound 
gently  up  a  hill  thickly  covered  with  hibiscus  shrubs. 
So  sinuous  was  their  course,  however,  that  objects 
even  a  few  yards  ahead  could  not  be  perceived. 

No  sound  disturbed  the  silence  of  the  island  night, 
save  for  the  throbbing  of  the  ever-restless  surf  and  the 
strange,  plaintive  cries  of  the  young  sea-birds  in  their 
rookeries  on  the  cliffs. 

Suddenly  there  rang  out,  and  echoed  and  re-echoed 
in  quavering  reverberations  in  the  hollows  of  the  hills. 


THE  TONGUE  OF  A  WOMAN  247 

three  musket  shots  in  quick  succession,  followed  by 
the  hoarse,  weird  clamour  of  tens  of  thousands  of  birds 
as  they  rose  and  circled  in  wild  alarm. 

"  By  God  ! "  cried  Young,  "  we  must  run  ;  that's 
our  men  firing." 

"  This  comes  of  too  much  palavering.  While  we've 
been  paying  out  fathoms  of  talk  the  fight  has  begun," 
said  Quintal,  angrily  ;  and  the  four  white  men,  leaving 
Talalu  to  his  own  devices,  took  to  their  heels  and  ran 
excitedly  in  the  direction  of  the  firing,  which  seemed, 
however,  to  be  nearer  the  white  men's  houses  than  to 
that  of  the  Tubuaians. 

"  Looks  as  if  our  fellows  had  grabbed  'em  while 
they  were  asleep,  and  court-martialled  'em  on  the 
spot  while  we've  been  arguing  over  the  thing,"  said 
McCoy  as  he  ran  with  the  others. 

But  their  surmises  were  entirely  wrong.  Before  get- 
ting more  than  two  hundred  yards  further  Smith,  who 
was  in  advance,  stumbled  and  fell  over  something  in  the 
darkness ;  the  hands  he  put  out  to  save  himself  plunged 
into  a  pool  of  blood  which  was  oozing  from  the  body 
of  Brown,  who  lay  dead  in  the  middle  of  the  track, 
with  a  jagged  bullet-hole  through  his  chest. 

"  By  God,  it's  Brown  ! "  cried  Smith,  feeling  the 
man's  face,  "  and  he's  dead  !  " 

"There's  been  a  fight.  Come  on,  men,  for  heaven's 
sake  ;  we  may  be  in  time  to  save  the  others  "  ;  and 
Young,  followed  by  McCoy  and  Quintal,  rushed 
along  the  track  in  search  of  their  comrades,  and  in 
a  few  seconds  had  left  Smith  many  yards  behind. 

Stooping  down  again  over  the  body  of  the  murdered 


248  THE  MUTINEER 

man,  Smith  felt  his  heart  to  satisfy  himself  that  he  was 
dead.  He  lifted  the  still  bleeding  figure,  carried  it  a 
few  yards  away  from  the  path,  and  proceeded  to  grope 
for  his  own  musket,  which  he  had  dropped. 

As  he  stooped  a  dark  form  silently  stepped  out  from 
the  thick  undergrowth  lining  the  path.  A  clubbed 
musket  was  raised  in  the  air,  and  Smith  fell  and  lay 
unconscious  close  to  the  corpse  of  his  fellow-country- 
man. 

"  Aue  ! "  said  Manale  the  Tubuaian  to  Nihu  the 
Tahitian,  who  accompanied  him,  "  'tis  Simeti  whom 
I  have  slain.  And  I  would  not  have  harmed  him,  for 
he  hath  ever  been  good  to  us.  But  this  dog" — and 
he  spurned  the  body  of  the  other  white  man — "  was 
our  enemy,  and  my  hand  was  strong  with  hate  when 
I  slew  him." 

Young  and  the  others  ran  on,  but  only  for  a  short 
distance,  when  again  an  exclamation  of  horror  burst 
from  them  ;  this  time  two  dead  men  lay  in  their 
path — Mills  and  Martin. 

Then,  before  they  could  realise  what  had  happened, 
five  muskets  blazed  out  from  a  rocky  ridge  above,  and 
several  naked  figures  sprang  from  their  ambush  with 
savage  yells. 

None  of  the  white  men  were  struck,  but  Quintal 
and  McCoy,  terrified  out  of  their  wits,  dropped  their 
muskets  and  fled.  The  intense  darkness  favoured 
them.  They  succeeded  in  evading  the  rush  of  their 
opponents,  and  were  soon  clambering  down  the  moun- 
tain side  in  the  hope  of  finding  better  shelter  in  the 
dense  scrub  of  the  valley.      Young  alone  stood  his 


THE  TONGUE  OF  A  WOMAN  249 

ground,  and  fired  his  musket  at  the  first  of  the  natives 
who  sprang  upon  him  ;  but  he  missed  his  mark,  and 
before  he  could  club  the  weapon  Nihu  struck  him  a 
blow  on  the  head  with  a  musket,  and  laid  him  sense- 
less. 

The  five  figures  bent  over  him  for  a  moment,  and 
talked  hurriedly  among  themselves. 

"  'Tis  Etuati,"  said  Tetihiti ;  "  he  lieth  as  one 
dead.  For  the  sake  of  Alrema,  his  wife,  who  is  of 
my  blood,  let  him  live,  oh  friends  "  ;  and  he  warded 
off  the  musket  of  the  savage  Manale,  who  had  pressed 
the  muzzle  of  the  weapon  to  Young's  heart.  "But 
the  other  two,  Makoi  and  Kawintali,  must  die." 

So  they  sped  away  in  pursuit  of  Quintal  and  McCoy. 


CHAPTER  XXX 

AFTER     THE      STORM 

FOR  some  minutes  Edward  Young  lay  stunned 
upon  the  rocky  path,  a  stream  of  blood  oozing 
from  a  severe  cut  in  his  head.  Presently  the  cool 
night  air  brought  him  back  to  consciousness,  and, 
as  by  slow  degrees  his  senses  returned  he  feared  that 
he  alone  was  left  alive  of  all  the  white  men  on  the 
island,  and  it  was  likely  enough  that  even  his  hours 
were  numbered.  With  a  struggle  he  rose  slowly  and 
painfully,  dragging  his  footsteps  along  the  road  until 
he  reached  his  house.  Fearful  of  again  encountering 
the  enraged  islanders  he  proceeded  with  the  greatest 
caution,  stopping  suddenly,  when  at  a  turn  in  the 
narrow  track  he  saw  three  figures  in  a  crouching 
position. 

He  dropped  upon  his  hands  and  knees  and  scanned 
them  carefully.  Presently  he  recognised  Nahi,  Alrema, 
and  Terere.  The  three  women  were  supporting 
Smith,  who  was  too  badly  hurt  to  stand  upon  his  feet. 
As  Young  watched,  doubtful  whether  to  approach  or 
not,  he  saw  a  fourth  figure  join  them,  and  knew  Ma- 

250 


AFTER  THE  STORM  251 

hina  by  the  black  mantle  of  hair  falling  down  her 
back. 

"  Is  he  dead,  I  wonder  ?  "  he  muttered  to  himself. 
"  Better  for  him  if  he  is.  I  will  never  surrender  her 
again." 

He  rose  to  his  feet  and  advanced  towards  them.  The 
women  gave  a  startled  cry,  and  Smith  fell  back  upon 
the  ground  with  a  groan  of  agony. 

Alrema's  arms  were  round  Young's  neck  in  an 
instant,  and  her  fearful,  panting  bosom  pressed  to 
his  lovingly.  "  My  husband,  my  husband,"  she 
murmured,  "  thou  art  wounded  ;  yet  Nahi  said  thou 
wouldst  be  safe."  She  turned  fiercely  upon  the  wife 
of  Talalu,  who  covered  her  face  with  her  hands  and 
wept. 

"  Alas  !  what  have  I  done  ?  "  said  Nahi,  "  the  fire 
of  anger  in  my  countrymen's  hearts  was  kindled  by 
me,  and  in  their  wrath  they  knew  not  friend  from  foe." 

Mahina  drew  near,  trembling  from  head  to  foot ; 
and  Alrema,  with  an  agonised  heart,  saw  her  husband's 
hand  steal  out  to  her  friend's  and  give  it  a  quick,  warm 
pressure.  Then  Mahina  sank  upon  her  knees  in  the 
darkness  and  wept  silently.  Did  Alrema  know  that 
she,  her  friend,  had  yielded,  and  that  Edward  Young  no 
longer  cared  for  the  brave,  loyal  wife  who  had  fought 
and  bled  for  him  in  the  days  gone  by  in  Tubuai  ? 

Alrema  did  know.  But  maddened  as  she  was  by 
the  discovery  of  her  husband's  faithlessness,  she  was  yet 
true  to  Mahina  ;  and  all  her  love  for  Young  welled  up 
fresh  and  strong  in  her  heart  when  she  felt  him  sway- 
ing to  and  fro  on  his  feet  from  weakness. 


252  THE  MUTINEER 

"  Thou  cruel  Nahi,"  she  cried  bitterly,  "  dost  thou 
think  that  thy  husband  is  more  dear  to  thee  than  mine 
is  to  me  " — a  sob  choked  her  utterance — "he  for  whom 
my  life  is  ever  ready  to  be  given  ?  If  he  comes  to 
further  harm  I  sw^ear  I  w^ill  kill  thee,  thou  false  and 
wricked  Nahi." 

Nahi  sprang  to  her  feet,  and  her  black  eyes  gleamed 
with  fire  as  she  threw  her  arms  wide  out.  "What 
I  have  done  was  for  the  love  of  Talalu  !  But  let 
us  not  waste  time  in  words  ;  hide  thy  husband  and  the 
husband  of  Terere  until  the  fury  of  our  people  hath 
spent  itself." 

It  was  now  agreed  that  Young,  who  was  only  just 
able  to  walk,  should  go  on  ahead  and  conceal  himself 
in  a  cave  in  the  mountains,  known  only  to  the  women, 
who  would  bring  him  food  and  water  until  he  was  safe 
from  pursuit  or  further  vengeance  from  the  brown 
men  ;  and,  supported  by  Alrema  and  the  trembling 
Mahina,  the  wounded  man  set  out,  and  the  three 
toiled  slowly  along.     Then  Young  began  to  talk. 

"  Leave  me  by  myself,"  he  said  weakly  in  English. 
"You,  Alrema,  return  home  and  see  to  our  child. 
Maybe  she  has  come  to  harm.  You,  Mahina,  look  for 
your  husband,  he  may  be  dead." 

"  What  matters  it  to  me  ? "  burst  from  Mahina. 
"Would  that  I,  too,  were  dead." 

"  Take  thou  my  husband  to  the  cave,  Mahina." 

It  was  Alrema  who  spoke,  steadying  her  voice 
through  unseen  tears.  "  Take  him  to  the  cave  whilst 
I  seek  out  thy  husband  and  bring  him  to  thee — to  thee 
and  to  his  friend — his  true  and  good  friend." 


AFTER  THE  STORM  253 

The  bitterness  of  the  words,  "his  true  and  good 
friend,"  pierced  the  anguished  heart  of  Christian's  wife 
like  a  knife-stab. 

"  Nay,  nay,  Alrema,  leave  me  not,  I  pray  thee.  See, 
thy  husband  needs  us  both.  Stay  with  me  ;  for  the 
love  I  have  always  borne  thee,  stay  with  me." 

But  Alrema  only  answered  her  with  a  sob,  and 
in  another  instant  was  gone,  to  fall  upon  her  face 
a  few  yards  away  and  weep  out  her  shame  and 
bitterness  of  heart.  "  For  the  sake  of  my  child," 
she  moaned,  "for  the  sake  of  my  child,  neither 
his  blood  nor  hers  shall  redden  my  hand." 

Then  rising  to  her  feet  she  went  to  seek  Christian. 


Smith  had  fainted.  His  wife,  as  soon  as  he  returned 
to  consciousness,  assisted  him  to  his  feet ;  they  set  out 
towards  the  cave  where  Young  was  gone,  and  in 
another  hour  their  journey  was  successfully  accom- 
plished. 

The  wives  of  McCoy  and  Quintal  —  Puni  the 
Huahine  woman,  and  Malama — meantime  sat  alone 
in  their  houses,  weeping  at  the  thought  of  the  fate 
which  they  felt  sure  had  overtaken  their  husbands. 
Nahi,  on  her  way  to  seek  Talalu  had  called  in  and 
spoken  words  of  encouragement  which  somewhat 
allayed  their  fears.  She  promised  that  she  would 
restrain  her  countrymen  from  further  attacking  the 
white  men  ;  then  still  fearful  as  to  what  had  become 
of  her  own  husband,  she  quickly  ran  the  rest  of 
the    distance    to    her    little    dwelling    in    Williams* 


254  THE  MUTINEER 

enclosure.  When  she  entered  she  found  the  gigantic 
Tahitian  quietly  seated  cross-legged  upon  a  mat,  with 
his  musket  beside  him,  eating  his  supper.  She  em- 
braced him  tenderly  and  began  to  tell  him  of  all  that 
had  happened. 

He  interrupted  her  in  the  middle  of  her  recital. 
"  I  know  all,  Nahi.  I  was  hidden  in  a  clump  of  trees 
and  saw  all  that  took  place  between  thee  and  the 
wounded  white  men.  And  now  that  thou  hast 
returned  in  safety  I  myself  will  go  to  Manale  and 
the  others,  and  stay  their  hands  from  further  killing. 
Enough  blood  has  been  shed." 

Towards  dawn  the  islanders  returned  from  their 
fruitless  search  for  McCoy  and  Quintal,  and  as  they 
filed  one  by  one  into  Williams'  house  they  were  met 
by  Talalu,  who  had  just  missed  them  in  the  dark- 
ness. 

In  a  few  words  he  so  worked  upon  their  feelings 
that  they  readily  agreed  to  do  no  further  harm  to  the 
remaining  white  men,  and  consented  to  meet  and  dis- 
cuss their  future  relations  towards  each  other. 

Christian,  slumbering  in  the  loneliness  of  his  moun- 
tain cave,  had  heard  the  report  of  the  muskets  and 
guessed  what  was  happening  ;  but  he  was  perfectly 
indifferent  as  to  how  the  quarrel  might  end,  and 
so  remained  where  he  was.  About  two  or  three  hours 
before  dawn  he  felt  a  touch  upon  his  arm  and  saw 
a  woman's  figure  bending  over  him. 

"What  now?"  he  said  angrily,  thinking  it  was 
Mahina  who  had  disturbed  him. 

"I    have    come,  Kirisiani,  to   tell  thee  that    three 


AFTER  THE  STORM  255 

of  the  white  men  are  dead,  and  Simeti  and  Etuati 
wounded.     Didst  thou  not  hear  the  guns  ? " 

"  I  heard  them,  Alrema,  but  it  is  naught  to  me." 

"  Naught  to  thee  ?  Hast  thou  no  thought  to  ask 
if  Mahina  and  thy  children  be  alive  or  dead  ?  " 

He  laughed  bitterly.  "  None.  What  care  I  for 
Mahina  ?  Dost  thou  think  I  am  blind  ?  Hast 
thou  not  seen  what  I  have  seen  ?  " 

The  woman  sank  on  her  knees  beside  him,  and, 
taking  his  hand  in  hers,  wept  passionately.  **  Aye, 
I  know  it  now.  But  yet  Mahina  is  my  friend,  else 
had  I  killed  her.  And  because  of  that  and  for  my 
great  friendship  for  thee  have  I  brought  thy  two 
children,  so  that  thou  mayest  take  them  to  their 
mother." 

"  Where  is  she  ?  "  asked  Christian  as  he  rose,  and 
with  steel  and  flint  lit  the  rude  lamp  of  coconut  oil. 

"  She  is  waiting  for  thee  in  the  cave  with  Simeti  and 
my  husband.  And  see,  this  do  I  swear — only  because 
I  bade  her  stay  and  help  the  wounded  men  did  she 
remain  away  from  thy  house  and  children.  Else  would 
she  have  come,  and  with  them  sought  thee  here." 

Christian  regarded  her  for  a  moment  or  two  in 
silence.  He  admired  her  intense  loyalty  and  devotion 
to  Mahina,  which  was  put  to  such  a  test,  and  so 
restrained  himself  from  sneering  at  her  weakness. 

"Where  are  my  children  ? "  he  asked. 

"  They  wait  outside.  I  feared  to  bring  them  to 
thee  till  we  had  spoken   together  a  little." 

"Bring  them  in,"  he  said,  "and  stay  with  then: 
here  till  I  return." 


256  THE   MUTINEER 

She  placed  her  hand  upon  his  shoulder.  "Thou 
wilt  hurt  neither  my  husband  nor  Mahina  ? "  she  said 
beseechingly. 

"No,"  he  said  in  a  low  voice,  "neither.  For 
the  sake  of  these,  my  children,  I  will  not." 

She  took  his  hand  and  kissed  it  again.  "  Forgive 
her,  Kirisiani.  When  thou  didst  cast  her  aside  from 
thee  on  the  cliffs  she  became  in  the  hands  of  my 
husband,  who  is  a  cunning  man,  as  a  twig  that  is  bent 
by  the  fingers  of  a  child.  Only  for  this  she  had 
remained  true  to  thee  and  he  true  to  me." 

Again  he  laughed  with  bitter  scorn.  "All  women 
are  alike,  and  all  men  are  false  to  their  friends  and  their 
duty  when  a  woman's  face  comes  between.  Stay  here 
till  I  return." 

Just  as  dawn  broke.  Christian,  guided  by  the  direc- 
tions Alrema  had  given  him,  found  and  entered  the 
cave,  and  was  greeted  with  an  exclamation  of  joy  from 
Smith  ;  Young,  who  lay  upon  a  couch  of  leaves, 
merely  nodded  to  him  and  said  nothing.  Mahina  was 
not  visible. 

"  I  am  glad  to  find  you  both  alive — both^^  he  added, 
with  a  steady  glance  at  Edward  Young,  whose  eyes 
dropped  before  his,  "although  if  every  white  man  on 
the  island  had  been  killed  it  would  have  been  but 
justice.  How  can  these  people  trust  men  who,  even 
among  themselves,  are  guilty  of  the  blackest  treachery 
to  each  other  ?  " 

For  a  little  while  no  one  spoke ;  then  came  a  murmur 
of  voices  outside,  and  Talalu  stood  before  the  three 
white  men. 


AFTER   THE    STORM  257 

"This  is  my  message  to  ye,  oh  white  men  who 
were  once  my  friends  ;  these  are  the  words  of  Temua, 
Nihu,  the  men  of  Tubuai,  and  I,  Talalu.  Let  there 
be  peace  between  us.  We  sought  not  blood  ;  only 
when  it  was  forced  upon  us  did  we  fight  and  kill.  Let 
there  be  peace." 

"I  blame  neither  thee  nor  them,"  said  Christian 
quietly,  "and  now  I  tell  these  two  men  here,  who 
were  once  my  friends,  but  whom  I  wish  to  see  no 
more,  that  they  will  do  well  to  make  peace  with  thee 
and  thy  countrymen." 

Without  a  word  of  farewell  he  turned  and  left  them 
with  Talalu,  who,  as  both  Young  and  Smith  saw,  was 
unfeignedly  glad  at  their  escape  ;  and  they  in  their 
turn  were  relieved  to  hear  that  McCoy  and  Quintal 
were  safe. 

As  the  sun  rose  they  heard  plaintive  notes  of  wailing 
for  the  dead  rising  from  the  valley  below,  and  soon 
after,  Nahi  and  some  of  the  Tahitian  men  came, 
unarmed,  to  tell  them  that  their  comrades'  graves  were 
being  dug. 

Still  weak  from  loss  of  blood,  Young  and  Smith 
managed  to  leave  their  retreat  and,  assisted  by  the  now 
friendly  Tahitians,  reach  the  valley,  where  they  saw 
standing  round  the  three  bodies  a  little  group  of  brown 
people.  As  they  drew  near,  Manale  stepped  out  from 
the  others  and  offered  his  hand  to  Young. 

"Is  it  peace  between  us  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  It  is  peace,"  said  Young  and  Smith,  both  taking 
his  hands. 

Presently  they  were  joined  by  McCoy  and  Quintal ; 
18 


258  THE    MUTINEER 

and  the  bodies  of  the  slain  men,  having  been  wrapped 
in  mats  by  the  women,  were  placed  in  their  graves  in 
silence,  broken  only  by  the  sobs  of  their  wives. 

Walking  slowly  away  from  the  cave,  Fletcher 
Christian,  with  white,  despairing  face,  went  first  to  his 
house,  intending  to  bring  away  some  further  articles 
for  his  own  use  in  his  retreat.  The  door  was  closed, 
but  not  fastened  on  the  inside.  Pushing  it  open,  he 
saw  the  figure  of  his  wife  upon  her  couch.  She  had 
been  weeping,  and  as  he  entered  the  room  trembled  in 
every  nerve  ;  then,  ere  he  could  restrain  her,  cast 
herself  at  his  feet  and  flung  back  her  head. 

"Kill  me,"  she  cried  ;  "kill  me,  else  will  I  die  as 
did  Faito." 

He  drew  back  from  her  coldly.  "  Thou  art  but  a 
woman,  and  men  do  not  kill  women  in  my  country, 
even  though  they  be  false  to  their  husbands.  Listen 
to  me.  So  that  I  never  see  thy  face  again  I  am 
content.  But  still  would  I  see  my  children  some- 
times. Therefore  with  thee  they  shall  remain,  and 
sometimes  will  I  come  to  them." 

In  another  moment  he  was  gone,  and  Mahina  looked 
wildly  after  his  retreating  figure.  Then  she  swayed 
and  fell,  and  an  hour  after  Alrema,  with  tears  of  pity 
filling  her  star-like  eyes,  came  in  with  the  children  and 
embraced  her  friend  lovingly. 

"  He  will  yet  love  thee  again,"  said  the  loyal  girl — 
"  'tis  but  a  black  cloud  that  will  vanish.  And  see,  I 
too  forgive  thee." 


CHAPTER   XXXI 


MINE    THE    HAND 


A  MONTH  had  elapsed.  To  Mahina  it  was  a 
month  of  misery. 

With  her  children  she  passed  her  days  and  nights  in 
solitude,  broken  only  by  visits  from  Talalu  and  Alrema, 
who  both  knew  the  secret  of  her  suffering.  Once  or 
twice  only  had  she  caught  sight  of  Christian  as  he 
wandered  about  his  cliffs  at  dusk,  and  had  been  impelled 
by  her  love  to  follow  and  speak  to  him  ;  but  with  a 
cold  gesture  of  indifference  he  had  waved  her  back  and 
walked  slowly  on,  oblivious  to  her  heart-wrung  sobs. 

And  not  to  Mahina  alont.  had  come  suspense  and 
grief;  Alrema  suffered  too,  for  her  husband  now  neg- 
lected her  for  the  company  of  McCoy  and  Quintal. 
Since  the  deaths  of  Brown,  Mills,  and  Martin,  a  period 
of  incessant  watchfulness  and  suspicion  had  ensued — 
the  white  men  dreaded  the  brown,  the  brown  suspected 
the  white.  Edward  Young,  fearful  of  more  blood- 
shed, had  tried  to  persuade  the  islanders  to  give  their 
arms  up  to  him  ;  but  this,  though  they  repeated  their 

259 


26o  THE   MUTINEER 

assurance  of  good  will  towards  the  seamen,  they  refused 
to  do. 

"  To  Kirisiani  alone  will  we  give  up  our  guns," 
said  one  of  the  Tubuaians,  "for  in  him  alone  have  we 
faith.  And  Kirisiani  himself  saith  that  there  is  no 
faith  or  honour  in  any  among  ye.  Thou,  Etuati,  who 
wert  once  his  sworn  taio^  knowest  if  he  speaketh  truth." 

Young  winced  at  the  native's  words,  but  said 
nothing.  His  mad  infatuation  for  Mahina  still  remained, 
yet  he  was  sensible  of  his  own  degradation  and  treach- 
ery to  Christian,  and  a  sense  of  shame  kept  him  from 
approaching  Mahina  since  that  fatal  evening.  Mahina 
herself,  though  the  man  had  acquired  a  strange  power 
over  her,  forcing  her  to  believe  his  passionate  declara- 
tion of  love,  trembled  with  fear  lest  she  should  see  him 
again. 

Talalu,  ever; faithful  both  to  her  and  her  husband, 
was  the  one  man  on  the  island  with  whom  Christian 
now  held  converse,  and  the  big-hearted  fellow  more 
than  once  sought  him  out  in  his  retreat  and  tried  to 
induce  him  at  least  to  meet  and  speak  to  his  wretched 
wife. 

"  She  is  but  a  woman,  Kirisiani ;  and  see,  oh  friend, 
her  heart  is  eaten  up  for  love  of  thee.  Canst  thou  not 
take  her  to  thee  again  ?  Thou  art  strong ;  she  is  weak. 
Are  women  of  Peretane  never  unfaithful  ?  " 

But  Christian,  though  he  listened  to  the  friendly 
Tahitian,  would  answer,  "  Let  it  be  as  it  is — she  is 
nought  to  me,  nor  I  to  her." 

One  night  as  the  two  sat  together  on  the  edge  of 
the  cliffs,  looking  over  the  wide  expanse  of  star-lit 


"MINE   THE   HAND"  261 

ocean,  the  Tahitian  began  to  talk  of  the  condition  of 
affairs  between  his  countrymen  and  the  whites,  and 
urged  Christian  to  destroy,  if  possible,  the  growing 
unrest  and  suspicion  which  disturbed  both  parties. 

"Thy  countrymen,"  he  said,  "go  about  in  fear  of 
us,  with  their  muskets  ever  to  their  hands.  Thou,  who 
art  a  chief  among  them,  canst  still  make  them  listen  to 
thee  ;  then  will  they  forget  all  that  is  past,  for  we  of 
Tahiti  and  Tubuai  do  not  seek  more  bloodshed." 

"I  can  do  nothing  for  thee,  Talalu.  Bitterly  do  I 
repent  the  misery  and  death  that  I  have  wrought  to 
white  men  and  brown  ;  but  I  can  do  nothing — no 
longer  will  I  interfere  between  thy  people  and  my 
countrymen." 

One  night  all  that  remained  of  the  mutineers 
assembled  in  Young's  house.  The  last  to  enter  was 
Smith,  accompanied  by  Terere,  whom  he  placed  out- 
side to  watch.  The  door  was  carefully  closed,  and  the 
men  sat  on  the  rough  wooden  benches  which,  with  a 
table,  formed  the  furniture  of  the  living  room.  For 
some  minutes  they  conversed  in  low  tones ;  then 
Young  rose  and  spoke. 

"We  can  delay  no  longer,"  he  said.  "The  Tahitians, 
my  wife  will  tell  you,  intend  to  attack  us  at  daybreak. 
They  firmly  believe  that  we  shall  not  rest  until  we 
have  avenged  the  murder  of  our  countrymen." 

The  other  men  looked  at  each  other  and  nodded 
acquiescence. 

*'  Yesterday,  so  Alrema  says,  they  came  to  the 
horrible  resolution  of  killing  us  all  except  Christian. 
Him  they  look  upon  as  mad,  and,  as  you  know,  they 


262  THE   MUTINEER 

have  a  curious  feeling  of  regard  for  mad  people.  They 
consider  the  insane  as  inspired  and  protected  by  the 
gods,  and  their  lives  are  held  sacred.  Now,  God 
knows,  I  have  no  wish  to  see  more  bloodshed  on  this 
island  ;  but,"  and  here  Young's  face  paled  and  his 
words  came  slowly,  "  it  seems  to  me  that  my  wife's 
advice,  however  dreadful  it  may  appear,  should  be 
followed.     Either  they  or  we  must  die." 

McCoy  struck  the  table  with  his  huge,  heavy  fist. 
"  Speaking  for  myself  and  Mat  Quintal,  I  think  we 
ought  to  have  done  it  long  ago.  Mr.  Christian's 
damned  fine  ideas  about  the  rights  o'  these  bloody- 
minded  savages  is  all  very  well  when  you  haven't  got 
to  live  with  them.     I  am  for  settling  it  at  once." 

"  I  don't  agree  with  you,"  said  Smith,  "  but  I  sup- 
pose my  opinion  won't  alter  the  matter  one  way  or 
another.  Since  Mr.  Christian  won't  have  anything 
to  do  with  us,  I  am  willing  to  look  to  Mr.  Young  as 
our  leader.  If  he  considers  it  necessary  for  our  safety 
to  murder  these  people — why  I've  gone  too  far  to  hold 
back  now." 

"Murder  is  an  ugly  name.  Smith,"  said  Young 
quickly,  "and  I've  no  mind  to  accept  your  help. 
McCoy,  Quintal,  and  myself  can  do  what  is  to  be 
done  without  you.    We  must  either  kill  or  be  killed." 

"Aye,  aye,  Mr.  Young,"  said  Quintal  approvingly. 
"  Smith  had  better  go  to  his  friend,  Mr.  Christian, 
and  live  in  his  cave.  We  three  can  settle  this  business. 
We  don't  want  any  white-livered  man  among  us  at 
a  time  like  this." 

With    a    fierce    glance   Smith    sprang   to    his   feet. 


"MINE   THE   HAND"  263 

"Damn  you,  Quintal,  you  are  too  ready  with  your 
tongue.  I'm  no  more  white-livered  than  you  are. 
You  knew  that  when  we  took  the  ship  off  Tofoa. 
If  Mr.  Young  says  the  word  I  am  ready  to  fight,  or 
murder,  or  whatever  you  like  to  call  it,  all  the  Tahi- 
tians  myself.  To  my  mind  he's  a  King's  officer  still 
— leastways  so  far  as  my  obedience  to  him  goes.  Say 
what  is  to  be  done,  and  I'll  have  a  hand  in  the  doing 
of  it." 

"  Words,  words,  idle  words,  and  nothing  is  done. 
In  a  little  time  it  may  be  too  late.  While  ye  talk, 
and  talk,  I,  Alrema,  will  alone  do  the  deed.  Mine 
shall  be  the  hand  to  strike." 

Alrema  was  sitting  in  a  corner  of  the  house,  her 
dark  eyes  watching  with  intense  interest  each  move- 
ment of  the  white  men,  and  listening  to  every  word 
spoken  ;  and  her  husband,  as  he  turned  towards  her, 
saw  in  her  eyes  the  look  he  had  seen  long  ago  on 
Tubuai,  when  she  held  in  her  hand  a  blood-stained 
cutlass. 

"  I  alone  will  do  it,"  and  seizing  an  axe  from  a  tool- 
rack  on  the  wall  she  waved  her  hand  to  the  whites, 
opened  the  door,  and  was  gone. 

Picking  up  their  muskets  the  four  men  hastily 
followed  Alrema  along  the  narrow  track  which  led 
to  the  dwelling  of  her  countrymen  and  the  house  of 
Williams. 

At  the  doorway  of  Williams'  house  sat  the  huge 
Taialu,  musket  in  hand,  keeping  watch  while  his 
countrymen  slept.  For  some  weeks  they  had  never 
rested  without  setting  a  watch,  for  their  wives  warned 


26+  THE   MUTINEER 

them  continually  that  the  white  men  were  dangerous 
and  were  plotting  mischief.  Nahi,  who  seemed  ani- 
mated by  the  bitterest  feeling  of  hatred  against  all  the 
whites  save  Christian,  had  continually  declared  that 
sooner  or  later  the  remaining  Englishmen  would 
avenge  the  deaths  of  their  comrades  by  a  sudden 
massacre.  Her  repeated  warning  had  so  worked  upon 
the  fears  of  her  countrymen  as  to  force  them  into 
believing  its  truth,  and  they  resolved  to  be  beforehand 
with  the  white  men. 

"  Kill  them,  kill  them,"  she  urged.  "  Only  when 
their  blood  runs  shall  we  be  safe." 

So  they  sat  together  in  the  darkened  room  and 
agreed  to  make  an  attack  next  morning  at  daybreak, 
in  which  Nahi  and  the  wives  of  the  Tahitians  were 
to  take  part.  After  arranging  the  details,  the  plotters 
lay  down  to  sleep,  leaving  Talalu  on  watch.  He  was 
to  call  them  at  dawn  ;  and  as  the  brown  men  spread 
their  mats  upon  the  gravelled  floor,  Nahi  whispered 
in  his  ear,  "  To-morrow,  my  husband,  those  who 
sought  thy  life  will  be  silent  for  ever." 

But  Nahi  little  knew  that  Alrema,  ever  on  the 
alert,  had  learned  from  Puni  the  danger  that  overhung 
the  white  men,  and  had  guarded  against  it. 

Talalu,  sitting  dreamily  on  the  doorstep  of  the 
house,  with  his  musket  across  his  knees,  woke  with  a 
start.  Surely  a  footstep  rustled  the  dead  pandanus 
leaves  that  lay  along  the  path  ?  He  opened  his  half- 
closed  eyes  and  listened.  Nothing  broke  the  stillness 
but  the  murmuring  hum  of  the  surf,  and  the  strange 
weird  rustle  of  the  wind  as  it  soughed   through   the 


"MINE   THE   HAND"  265 

groves  of  pandanus  and  coco-palms.  He  bent  his 
head  again  and  dozed,  then  in  an  instant  was  upon 
his  feet.  Some  one  was  approaching,  for  this  time  he 
heard  clearly  the  crackling  of  dead  leaves  underfoot. 

Leaning  on  his  musket  his  keen  eye  eagerly 
scanned  the  darkness  of  the  night.  A  soft  footfall 
behind  him — and  it  was  too  late.  Before  he  could 
rise  and  face  the  intruder,  or  call  an  alarm,  Alrema's 
axe  had  cleft  his  skull  in  halves,  and  the  watcher's  cry 
of  warning  mingled  with  his  dying  groan. 

Swinging  the  weapon  over  her  head,  Alrema,  fol- 
lowed by  the  white  men,  dashed  into  the  house,  and 
then,  in  the  dim  light  of  the  flickering  lamp,  began  a 
horrible  slaughter  of  the  sleeping  men.  Manale,  who 
lay  nearest  the  door,  fell  as  he  rose,  beneath  a  blow 
from  Alrema's  axe,  which  sank  deep  into  the  broad, 
naked  bosom  ;  and  three  shots  from  the  white  man's 
muskets  did  the  rest  of  their  bloody  work. 

One  of  the  Tubuaians  alone  succeeded  in  leaping 
past  his  assailants  and  gaining  the  door  ;  but  Young 
drew  a  pistol  from  his  belt,  sprang  before  him  and 
pointed  the  weapon  at  his  head. 

"  Shoot ! "  cried  Alrema,  "  shoot !  spare  none,  so  that 
we  may  have  peace  afterwards." 

The  savage  thirst  for  slaughter  in  her  voice  steadied 
the  wavering  hand  that  but  for  her  would  have  spared. 
For  a  moment  he  hesitated,  then  aimed  the  pistol  at 
the  Tubuaian's  breast,  pulled  the  trigger,  and  the  last 
of  the  brown  men  fell  upon  his  face  on  the  blood- 
stained mats. 


CHAPTER   XXXII 


NAHI  S    REVENGE 


TOO  terrified  to  aid  their  husbands,  and  each 
moment  expecting  to  share  their  fate,  the  wives 
of  the  murdered  men  crouched  together  in  horror  at 
one  end  of  the  room,  nor  could  all  the  endeavours  of 
the  Englishmen  soothe  their  fears.  At  last  Young 
and  his  companions  went  away  and  left  them  with 
their  dead.  »Alrema,  fearless  as  she  was,  went  with 
them,  for  there  was  in  Nahi's  face  a  look  of  such 
deadly  hatred  that  even  her  iron-souled  nature  quailed 
before  it. 

At  sunrise  next  morning  two  people  alone  on  the 
island  knew  nothing  of  what  had  happened — Fletcher 
Christian  and  Mahina.  That  morning  she  sat  beside 
him  in  the  cave,  fanning  his  flushed  face  and  aching 
head,  for  he  was  ill  and  suffering  in  mind  and  body. 
Two  days  before,  at  sundown,  as  he  wandered  along 
the  wild  and  rugged  track  leading  to  his  mountain 
retreat,  she  had  watched  him  unseen,  and  saw  that  he 
staggered  as  he  walked  and  had  scarce  strength  enough 
to  drag  his  weary  feet  along.     She  waited  till  darkness 


NAHI'S  REVENGE  267 

set  in  and  then  followed,  her  heart  beating  fast  in  an 
agony  of  hope  and  fear.  Peering  cautiously  in  she 
saw  her  husband  fling  himself  upon  his  couch  and 
mats  and  lie  there,  his  face  turned  away  from  her, 
breathing  heavily  and  painfully.  For  some  minutes 
she  stood  and  watched  him  with  tears  of  loving  pity 
filling  her  eyes.  Her  husband  !  He  whose  love  was 
once  hers,  and  might  yet  be  again !  And  he 
was  ill  and  weak.  Surely  he  would  not  curse  her 
now  ? 

Softly  she  crept  in  through  the  darkness  and  sat  near 
him,  longing  yet  fearing  to  speak  ;  but  soon  she  knew 
by  his  low  mutterings  and  the  way  in  which  he  flung 
his  arms  about  that  he  was  ill  of  fever.  She  had  sur- 
mised as  much  when  she  saw  him  going  towards  the 
cave,  and  knew  how  perfectly  helpless  even  a  strong 
man  became  in  a  few  hours  from  the  first  attack. 

Quickly  she  made  her  way  in  the  darkness  back  to 
her  house,  filled  a  small  basket  with  some  ripe  limes, 
roused  her  children,  and,  leading  one  and  carrying. the 
other,  returned  as  quickly  as  possible. 

Short  as  was  her  absence,  she  knew  as  soon  as  she 
entered  the  cave  by  the  sound  of  Christian's  breathing 
that  he  was  much  worse.  Placing  the  children — of 
whose  fretful  cries  her  husband  seemed  quite  uncon- 
scious— by  themselves  in  a  corner,  she  quickly  cut 
some  of  the  limes  in  halves  and  squeezed  them  into 
a  coconut-shell,  with  a  little  water.  Then  she  raised 
Christian's  head  upon  her  knees,  and  the  fever-stricken 
man,  suffering  from  the  agonies  of  a  burning  thirst, 
eagerly  drank  the  life-giving  draught.     All  that  night 


268  THE    MUTINEER 

she  sat  beside  him,  cooling  his  aching  head  and  giving 
him  at  short  intervals  a  mouthful  of  lime-juice.  To- 
wards morning  the  violence  of  the  fever  abated.  He 
slept,  and  Mahina  vi^as  happy  as  she  vv^atched. 

The  dawn  came,  and  Christian's  breathing  grew 
soft  and  regular.  Mahina  took  his  hand  in  hers,  and 
raised  it  to  her  lips  ;  then,  overcome  by  weariness,  she 
lay  beside  him  and  slept  too. 

As  the  first  streaks  of  sunlight,  piercing  the  mountain 
mists,  lit  up  the  dark  and  jagged  rocks  which  hid  the 
cave  within  their  bosom.  Christian  awoke,  and  knew 
that  the  fever  was  gone.  Then  a  cry  escaped  him, 
as  he  saw  the  sleeping  figures  of  his  wife  and  children ; 
and  the  basket  of  limes  and  the  wet  bandage  just  fallen 
from  his  temples  told  him  all.  She  had  come  to  him 
when  he  was  ill  and  suffering  ;  come  to  him  when  his 
last  words  to  her  had  been  a  curse.  A  great  pity 
welled  up  in  his  heart  as  he  looked  at  her  pale,  worn 
face,  so  full  of  pain  and  suffering.  Her  thick  mantle 
of  black  hair  seemed  like  a  funeral  pall  to  her  body, 
now  so  weak  and  thin. 

A  blade  of  yellow  sunshine  shot  in  through  the 
mouth  of  the  cave  ;  it  touched  her  face  and  glorified 
it  with  a  strange  radiance,  and  P'letcher  Christian's 
better  nature  came  back  to  him  once  more. 

Sinking  quietly  back  upon  his  pillow  he  reached  out 
his  hand  and  placed  it  gently  upon  her  head. 

«  Mahina ! " 

A  broken  cry  of  trembling  happiness,  then  in  an 
instant  she  was  on  her  knees  before  him,  with  her 
hands  clasped  tightly  together,  and  a  look  of  unutter- 


NAHI'S   REVENGE  269 

able  yearning  in  her  dark,  sad  eyes.     He  drew  her  to 
him  and  kissed  her  lips. 

"  Thou  art  my  wife,"  he  said. 

With  streaming  eyes  she  flung  her  arms  round  his 
neck  and  sobbed  out  her  joy  to  live  again  upon  her 
husband's  bosom. 

All  that  morning  she  remained  in  the  cave,  for 
Christian  was  still  weak  from  the  fever.  In  the  after- 
noon, to  her  great  joy  he  told  her  that  henceforward 
she  and  the  children  should  remain  with  him  there, 
as  he  had  no  desire  to  return  and  live  in  the  valley. 
Mahina  eagerly  set  about  removing  all  their  possessions 
to  the  new  home.  When  she  returned,  the  sight  of 
Christian  playing  with  and  caressing  her  children 
filled  her  with  a  wild  sense  of  happiness,  and  already 
her  face  was  glowing  with  all  the  old  beauty  which 
had  once  fascinated  the  man  she  loved. 

In  her  excitement  about  removing  the  contents  or 
their  old  house,  Mahina  did  not  notice  the  absence 
of  the  people  from  the  village.  That  night,  however, 
when  after  so  many  months  of  misery  she  and  her 
children  lay  beside  her  husband,  she  talked  with 
Christian  of  the  growing  suspicion  and  hatred  now 
again  rending  the  life  of  the  little  community. 

"  Only  thee  of  all  the  white  men  do  my  people 
trust,"  she  said.  "  Wilt  thou  not  yet  come  and  decide 
between  them  and  thy  countrymen,  ere  it  be  too  late  ? 
Is  it  not  better,  my  husband,  for  all  men  to  dwell 
together  in  peace  ?  A  hot  word  leadeth  to  a  blow, 
and  the  hand  toucheth  the  musket,  and  death  leaps 
out  from  the  hollow  iron." 


270  THE   MUTINEER 

"  True,  Mahina,"  he  answered  mournfully  ;  "  I 
alone  am  to  blame  for  the  bloodshed  in  Afita.  But 
never  more  will  I  interfere." 

How  long  they  had  slept  they  knew  not,  when 
suddenly  they  awoke  to  the  report  of  firearms. 

"  What  new  horror  is  this  ? "  muttered  Christian  to 
himself,  as  he  hastily  rose  and  dressed. 

"  'Tis  my  countrymen  who  have  again  attacked  the 
white  men,"  answered  Mahina,  trembling  with  fear 
lest  her  people  should  seek  Christian's  life  in  their  mad 
lust  for  slaughter,  and  her  newly-found  happiness  come 
to  a  sudden  end. 

"  'Tis  as  likely  that  the  white  men  have  attacked 
the  brown,"  answered  Christian  bitterly.  "  Are  we 
not  all  rebels  and  murderers  ? " 

Determined  to  shoot  the  first  man  who  should 
attempt  to  enter  with  hostile  intent,  he  took  a  stool 
to  the  mouth  of  the  cave,  and  sat  there  musket  in 
hand,  waiting  for  the  dawn.  No  further  sound  reached 
them  from  the  valley,  and  they  were  beginning  to 
hope  that  they  had  heard  only  the  Tahitians  discharg- 
ing their  pieces  to  frighten  away  "evil  spirits,"  but 
as  the  day  broke,  they  saw  the  figure  of  Alrema 
clambering  up  the  path  along  the  ridge. 

"What  has  happened?"  cried  Mahina  to  the 
girl. 

"  Alas  !  Mahina,  the  white  men  are  well,  but  all  or 
our  countrymen  and  the  men  of  Tubuai  are  dead  ; 
the  white  men  have  slain  them  all.  And  their  wives 
have  now  fled  in  fear  and  hidden  themselves." 

In  a  few  words   she  told  her  dreadful  story,  and 


NAHI'S   REVENGE  271 

added  how,  when  daylight  came,  the  wives  of  McCoy 
and  Smith,  going  to  comfort  the  widows  of  the  mur- 
dered men,  found  nothing  there  but  the  cold  bodies 
of  the  victims — the  women  had  fled.  So  while  the 
four  seamen  buried  those  whom  they  had  slain,  their 
wives  went  in  search  of  the  missing  women,  and 
Alrema  had  come  to  the  cave,  thinking  that  they 
might  have  taken  refuge  with  Christian. 

"Thou  cruel  murderess,"  said  Christian  sternly  to 
Alrema,  "so  thine  was  the  bloody  hand  which  took 
the  life  of  Talalu  !  May  the  gods  punish  thee,  thou 
cruel  and  wicked  woman  !  " 

His  savage  words  terrified  her,  and  she  shrunk 
back  in  alarm.  Disdaining  further  speech  with  her. 
Christian  turned  to  Mahina. 

"  Come,  Mahina,  let  us  seek  for  these  poor  creatures 
who  in  the  madness  of  their  despair  and  terror  may  do 
themselves  injury." 

Leaving  the  sleeping  children,  and  closely  followed 
by  Alrema,  Christian  and  Mahina  began  to  descend 
the  mountain  by  the  narrow  and  intricate  path  winding 
to  the  plain.  Sometimes  it  led  through  huge  crevices 
in  the  rock,  which  shut  out  the  light  on  either  side, 
and  left  only  a  patch  of  blue  sky  overhead  ;  sometimes 
it  ran  sharply  over  the  dizzy  summit  of  the  broken 
mountain,  from  whence  they  could  see  the  surf-beaten 
beach  below. 

Suddenly  the  quick  seaman's  eye  of  Christian  detected 
moving  figures  on  Bounty  Beach,  and  he  stopped  and 
gazed  intently  down.  Away  from  the  wash  of  the 
waves  the  'Bounty's  boat  lay  bottom  uowards,  rapidly 


272  THE    MUTINEER 

falling  into  decay  from  disuse  ;  and  the  figures  he  had 
seen  were  turning  it  over  upon  its  keel. 

Even  while  he  looked  he  saw  the  three  women,  the 
moment  they  had  turned  the  boat  over,  begin  to  drag 
her  towards  the  water ;  but  they  were  not  strong 
enough  to  make  much  progress  in  their  efforts. 

A  cry  of  pity  escaped  Mahina. 

"  What  would  they  do  ?  "  she  said.  "  The  boat 
is  old  and  rotten,  and  they  seek  to  drag  it  to  the 
water  !  Save  them,  my  husband,  ere  they  die  by 
the  sharks." 

"  Nay,  it  is  I  who  have  filled  them  with  fear,  and 
'tis  I  who  will  save  them  from  death  ! "  And  Alrema 
bounded  down  the  dangerous  path,  her  long,  black 
hair  flying  about  her  naked  shoulders  as  she  sprang 
from  ledge  to  ledge,  thoughtless  of  danger  to  herself 
in  her  effort  to  avert  this  last  calamity. 

Christian  and  Mahina  followed  closely,  but  when 
Alrema  gained  the  beach  the  women  had  succeeded  in 
floating  the  boat  and,  using  her  bottom  boards  as 
paddles,  had  sent  her  some  little  distance  from  the 
shore. 

"  Come  back,  come  back,  thou  foolish  Nahi  !  " 
Alrema  cried  frantically  from  the  beach.  "  Come 
back  ;  I  swear  by  the  gods  that  no  harm  shall  come 
to  thee  ! " 

A  heavy  roller  lifted  the  boat  and  carried  her  back 
for  some  distance  shoreward,  and  the  women  had  all 
they  could  do  to  keep  her  from  broaching  to  ;  but 
Nahi  while  she  paddled  looked  over  her  shoulder  at 
Alrema  and  cursed  her  bitterly. 


NAHI'S   REVENGE  273 

"Thou  murderess!"  she  cried,  "rather  will  we 
drown  or  go  into  the  bellies  of  the  sharks  than  live 
in  this  bloody  land  of  Afita  with  thee." 

Alrema  took  no  heed  of  her  words,  but  cast  off 
her  waist-cloth  of  tappa  and  plunged  into  the  sea. 
She  could  see  that  there  was  a  brief  lull  in  the 
succession  of  rollers  tumbling  in  upon  the  beach, 
and  that,  poor  as  their  boards  were,  the  women 
would  succeed  in  getting  out  to  deep  water  unless 
she  managed  to  reach  the  boat  quickly. 

"  Paddle,  paddle,"  panted  Nahi  to  the  others  ; 
"let  not  the  red-handed  woman  touch  the  boat!" 
and  she  plunged  her  board  into  the  water  with 
all  her  strength — it  broke  in  halves,  and  the  boat 
broached  to. 

She  stood  up  in  the  stern,  with  despair  in  her  eyes, 
and  looked  round  her.  Already  Alrema  was  within  a 
few  feet  of  the  boat,  and  in  imploring  tones  was 
calling  to  the  women  to  return,  when  Nahi  spoke 
to  her  two  companions  in  a  low  voice.  They  looked 
inquiringly  at  her,  and  she  answered  their  looks  with 
an  impatient  gesture  to  cease  paddling. 

Panting,  and  now  almost  exhausted,  Alrema  at  last 
gained  the  boat,  put  out  her  right  hand  and  grasped 
the  gunwale. 

"Come,"  she  said  faintly,  "come  back  with  me, 
Nahi." 

Looking  down  at  her  with  savage  hatred,  the  wife 
of  Talalu  smiled  cruelly  at  the  pleading  face. 

"  Aye,"  she  answered,  "  I  come."  And,  without 
another  word  she  sprang  out  of  the  boat,  clasped  her 
19 


274  THE   MUTINEER 

arms  round    Alrema's    neck,    and    uttering    a    curse 

with  her    last  breath,   dragged   her    enemy   to  death 

with  her  beneath  the  water. 


CHAPTER    XXXIII 


THE    BREW    OF    DEATH 


A  FORTNIGHT  after  the  last  of  the  tragedies 
which  had  marked  the  life  of  the  island  dwellers, 
Christian  withdrew  himself  for  ever  from  all  associa- 
tion with  the  rest  of  the  white  men,  and  spent  his 
whole  time  in  the  cave,  scarce  speaking  even  to  his 
now  heart-broken  wife,  though  her  patient,  winning 
ways  won  from  him  sometimes  a  mute  caress. 

By  day  she  watched  with  the  tenderest  solicitude 
over  her  husband's  lonely  wanderings  ;  by  night  she 
listened  to  the  strange  mutterings  which  broke  his 
sleep  ;  torturing  her  mind  with  dread  that  the  end 
of  her  brief  happiness  was  near. 

The  other  women  still  lived  in  constant  fear  of 
some  new  horror,  and  when  the  white  men's  wives 
had  performed  their  daily  round  of  tasks  for  their 
husbands'  homes,  they  gathered  together  in  the  dusk 
of  the  evening  with  the  widows  of  the  murdered  men, 
and  tremblingly  asked  each  other  what  the  morrow 
would  bring  forth  —  would  it  be  death  for  all  ? 
Nothing  that  the  white  men  could  say  could  quiet 
275 


276  THE   MUTINEER 

their  fears  ;  and  at  last  in  their  extremity  they  came 
to  the  resolution  to  poison  all  the  white  men  who 
remained,  lest  their  masters  should  plan  some  new 
attack  upon  them. 

But  as  soon  as  they  had  come  to  this  determination, 
some  of  them,  fearful  that  their  plans  might  miscarry, 
and  their  intended  victims  retaliate  upon  them  with 
some  dreadful  punishment,  secretly  informed  Young, 
Smith,  McCoy,  and  Quintal  of  the  plot.  At  first  the 
white  men  listened  incredulously,  and  when  they  did 
believe  the  story  they  understood  that  the  women 
had  been  driven  to  this  horrible  device  through  fear 
alone,  and  not  from  any  desire  for  vengeance  upon 
their  husbands'  murderers.  And  so  when  one  by  one 
the  plotters  confessed  and  begged  for  forgiveness. 
Young  and  the  others  not  only  readily  granted  it, 
but  tried  hard  to  persuade  them  that  their  terror  was 
groundless. 

Worn  with  the  results  of  a  fever  which,  soon  after 
the  tragic  end  of  his  wife,  had  wasted  his  once  great 
strength  and  muscular  frame,  Edward  Young  was 
now  greatly  changed.  As  he  listened  to  the  women's 
tale  he  raised  his  hands  above  his  head,  and  swore  by 
their  gods  and  the  Christ-God  of  the  white  men  that 
no  harm  should  come  to  them. 

*'  Let  us  who  are  left  dwell  together  in  peace,"  he 
said. 

With  fresh  hope  kindled  in  their  bosoms,  the  poor 
women  bent  their  heads  to  the  ground  and  kissed  his 
feet,  and  swore  to  work  for  and  obey  him  and  the 
other  white  men  to  the  end  of  their  lives. 


THE   BREW  OF   DEATH  277 

So  the  months  went  by  in  quiet  and  uneventful  life, 
and  although  the  little  community  at  the  settlement 
sometimes  saw  Mahina  and  her  two  children,  her 
husband  never  came  near  them.  Twice  he  and 
Young  met,  and  the  latter's  face  flushed  deeply  at 
the  memory  of  the  past,  but  Christian  spoke  to  him 
calmly,  without  a  sign  of  either  anger  or  bitterness, 
and  then  went  on  his  way  indifferent  to  all  around 
him. 

Young  himself  had  now  so  far  succeeded  in  con- 
troUing  his  passion  for  Mahina  as  to  marry  the  widow 
of  one  of  the  murdered  Tahitians,  and  sought  by  his 
conduct  to  make  her  and  the  other  women  feel  that 
their  lives  were  in  no  danger.  The  terrible  fate  of 
Alrema  had  had  a  good  and  lasting  effect  upon  his 
reckless  nature,  and  there  now  seemed  no  likelihood 
of  a  further  tragedy  breaking  the  monotony  of 
existence  on  the  lonely  island.  Christian  lived  entirely 
in  his  cave,  but  occasionally  worked  with  Mahina  in 
the  garden  of  their  deserted  house,  and  cheerfully  gave 
part  of  its  yield  to  those  of  the  community  whose 
lands  were  not  so  fruitful. 


Three  years  passed,  then  there  came  a  change. 
One  evening  McCoy  walked  over  to  Quintal's  house, 
accompanied  by  Puni,  his  Huahine  wife.  Quintal 
and  his  wife  Malama  were  rolling  into  a  cylindrical 
shape  a  bundle  of  wild  tobacco  leaf,  while  their  little 
half-blood  son  lay  asleep. 

Seating    himself  cross-legged   on  the  matted  floor 


278  THE    MUTINEER 

beside  his  comrade,  and  briefly  nodding  to  Malama, 
McCoy  said,  "  I'm  sick  of  this  damned  life.  Mat  ;  the 
same  round  day  after  day,  night  after  night — no 
change,  no  pleasure.  Young  and  Smith  don't  have 
much  to  say  to  us,  and  Christian  is  as  good  as  a  dead 
man,  for  all  he  has  to  do  with  us." 

"  I'm  as  tired  of  it  as  you  are,  Bill,"  answered 
Quintal  ;  "  but  what  are  we  to  do  ?  We  can't 
leave  here  even  if  we  had  a  good  boat — we  dare 
not." 

"  No,  I  know  that  well  enough  ;  but  I've  an  idea 
how  we  can  make  life  a  little  pleasanter — for  us  two, 
at  any  rate." 

"  How  ? " 

"  Do  you  remember  once  I  was  telling  Brown 
about  a  ship's  company  that  was  cast  away  at  Mar- 
tinique, or  some  island  near  there,  who  found  a  plant, 
out  of  which  they  made  barrels  and  barrels  of  good 
grog?" 

"  Well,  this  isn't  Martinique." 

"  No  ;  but  the  same  plant  grows  here.  Just  before 
poor  Will  Brown  was  killed  he  told  me — it's  the 
thing  the  women  call  ti.^  Why,  it's  growing  all 
over  the  island — there's  acres  of  it  in  the  little  valley 
at  the  back  of  Tautumah." 

"  How  are  we  going  to  make  it  ?  "  said  Quintal, 
with  sudden  interest.  "  It  would  be  a  glorious  thing 
to  have  a  taste  of  grog  again." 

"With  the  Bounty's  copper  boiler  and  my  know- 
ledge of  the  thing.     I  worked  in  a  distillery  in  Dublin 

'  Cordyline  terminalis. 


THE   BREW   OF   DEATH  279 

when  I  was  a  boy,  and  it'll  go  hard  if  I  can't  make  a 
still." 

"  I'm  with  you,  my  hearty.  Come  on,  it's  a  fine 
night — let  us  go  and  get  the  copper  out  of  the  store 
house.  We'll  make  a  cradle  for  it,  and  Malama  and 
Puni  here  can  carry  it  up  at  once.  If  you  can  make 
grog  out  of  ti  root  I'll  say  you're  a  damned  clever 
fellow." 

A  week  later  McCoy  rushed  into  Quintal's  house, 
"  It's  done,  Mat,  I've  got  good  spirit  ;  come  and  try 
it." 

Quintal  did  try  it,  not  once,  but  several  times.  An 
hour  afterwards  he  and  his  comrade  reeled  up  to 
Young's  house,  where  Smith  was  seated  at  the  table, 
receiving  instruction  in  reading  and  writing  from 
Young.  Of  late  this  manner  of  passing  their 
evenings  had  become  a  settled  thing  between  them. 
What  few  books  were  on  board  the  'Bounty  when 
Christian  had  run  her  ashore  had  been  quietly  taken 
possession  of  by  Smith,  and  from  these,  with  the  aid 
of  Young  and  his  own  intelligence,  he  was  rapidly 
improving  himself. 

As  he  and  Young  sat  together  at  the  table  their 
women  occupied  themselves  in  stitching  clothes  made 
from  tappa  cloth,  and  as  they  worked  they  spoke  in 
low  tones,  lest  they  should  disturb  their  white 
husbands. 

With  a  drunken  laugh,  McCoy,  followed  by 
Quintal,  staggered  into  the  dimly-lighted  room,  and, 
steadying  himself  with  one  hand  on  the  table,  addressed 
Young  and  Smith. 


28o  THE    MUTINEER 

"Come  and  have  a  glass  of  grog,  Mr.  Young,"  he 
hiccoughed. 

"  Yes,  come  along  and  drink  confusion  to  the  King, 
and  bring  the  women  with  you,"  cried  Quintal,  leering 
amiably  at  Terere  and  Young's  wife,  who  had  sprung 
to  their  feet  in  alarm  ;  "  it's  good  liquor  we've  got — 
none  of  your  bounty  slops,  none  of  Old  Grog's  slush, 
but  the  real  thing." 

"  Why,  these  fellows  are  drunk  or  mad,"  exclaimed 
Young,  with  a  look  of  astonishment  at  Smith. 

"  Where  could  they  get  drink  ?  "  answered  Smith, 
looking  first  at  one  and  then  at  the  other.  They  met 
his  expression  of  wonder  with  coarse  guffaws. 

"  Get  it  !  Why,  you  damned  fools,  we  made  it  ! 
I  made  it !  What's  your  book  learning  amount  to  ? 
It  couldn't  teach  you  to  make  prime  liquor  like  it," 
said  McCoy,  who  was  ready  to  quarrel  with  any  one. 

"  If  you  have  found  a  way  of  making  spirit,  it  is 
about  the  worst  thing  you  could  have  done.  You'll 
kill  yourselves  with  it,"  said  Young,  who  remembered 
that  both  McCoy  and  Quintal  were  several  times 
punished  while  on  the   'Bounty  for  drunkenness. 

McCoy  answered  with  a  curse,  Quintal  made  a 
threatening  gesture,  and  a  desperate  quarrel  would 
have  ensued,  but  Smith  interfered  ;  and  finally,  to 
pacify  the  drunken  men,  he  and  Young  went  across 
to  McCoy's  house  to  taste  his  brewing. 

It  was  fortunate  for  both  Young  and  Smith  that 
each  conceived  a  dislike  for  the  fiery  liquor  at  the  first 
taste.  When  McCoy  and  Quintal,  with  drunken  in- 
sistence, urged  them  to  make  a  night  of  it,  and  kept 


THE    BREW   OF   DEATH  281 

swallowing  drink  after  drink,  the  other  two  surrepti- 
tiously threw  theirs  on  the  ground.  Promising  to 
return  later  on,  they  at  last  managed  to  escape,  and 
get  back  to  their  frightened  wives. 

On  the  following  evening  the  drunkards,  who  had 
slept  till  near  noon,  again  appeared.  Tliis  time  they 
were  so  savage  in  their  demeanour,  and  threatened 
such  fearful  villainies,  that  the  other  two  men  feared 
bloodshed,  and  hid  themselves  with  their  wives  in  a 
thicket  near  the  house.  For  two  days  and  nights  the 
two  seamen  continued  their  drinking  bout ;  each  even- 
ing their  drunken  yells  and  horrid  blasphemies  reached 
even  the  dwellers  in  Christian's  cave,  and  made  Mahina 
tremblingly  press  her  infant  to  her  bosom. 

On  the  morning  of  the  third  day,  McCoy  in  his 
frenzy,  rushed  from  his  house,  followed  by  the  equally 
maddened  Quintal,  took  the  path  along  the  edge  of 
the  cliffs,  and,  reaching  the  highest  peak,  threw  himself 
headlong  upon  the  rocks  below. 

A  hideous  laugh  of  approval  came  from  Quintal  as  he 
saw  McCoy  leap  to  death,  then,  with  a  look  of  insane 
cunning,  muttering  and  gibbering  to  himself,  he  re- 
turned to  the  settlement,  and  went  inside  his  house. 
There  he  poured  out  a  pannikin  of  the  fiery  liquid,  and 
tossed  it  off;  then,  picking  up  an  axe  and  a  burning 
brand,  set  off  at  a  run  towards  the  other  houses.  His 
dreadful  appearance  and  the  wild  curses  he  shouted 
upon  every  one  sent  the  Tahitian  women  fleeing  before 
him  to  seek  refuge  with  Smith  and  Young,  who  rushed 
to  the  doorway  and  saw  the  demented  creature  destroy- 
ing Williams'  house  with  his  axe.     In  a  few  minutes 


282  THE    MUTINEER 

he  had  utterly  wrecked  it,  and  then,  flinging  down  his 
weapon,  he  advanced  towards  Young's  house,  waving 
the  firebrand  in  his  hand. 

Apparently  unconscious  that  his  movements  were 
watched,  he  sprang  over  the  low  stone  wall  and  made 
straight  for  the  house,  looking  at  the  thick  drooping 
thatch,  and  grinning  like  a  fiend. 

"  Stand  back,"  cried  Young,  as  musket  in  hand  he 
pushed  past  Smith  and  the  terrified  women,  and  faced 
Quintal,  "stand  back,  Quintal,  and  throw  away  that 
firestick,  or,  as  God  is  above  me,  I  will  shoot  you  !  " 

A  mocking  laugh  was  the  wretch's  answer  ;  he 
staggered  past,  and  seizing  a  bunch  of  the  light,  dry 
thatch  in  his  left  hand  thrust  the  firestick  into  its 
centre. 

"  I'm  going  to  burn  your "     He  never  finished, 

for  Young,  raising  his  musket,  fired,  and  shot  the 
miserable  man  dead. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 

"try   to   forget   the    past" 

CHRISTIAN,  as  soon  as  he  heard  of  the  death  of 
Quintal,  bitterly  reproached  himself  as  the  cause ; 
his  old  brooding  manner  returned  to  him  in  all  its 
former  intensity,  and,  nothing  that  Mahina  or  Smith 
said  could  soften  the  feeling  of  passionate  remorse 
which  now  took  possession  of  him." 

"  God  knows,  Mr.  Christian,"  said  Smith  to  the 
mutineer  in  an  endeavour  to  rouse  him  from  his 
melancholy,  "  you  have  nothing  to  reproach  yourself 
with.  You  are  not  responsible  for  what  led  to  the 
death  of  these  men.  If  my  musket  had  been  loaded  I 
would  have  shot  Quintal  myself ;  and  I  am  no  lover 
of  bloodshed." 

Christian  made  no  answer,  but  buried  his  face  in  his 
hands  ;  and  presently  Smith,  seeing  that  he  seemed  to 
have  become  unconscious  of  his  presence,  returned  to 
his  house.  Descending  the  ridge  he  met  Young 
coming  up.  His  face  was  very  pale,  and  Smith  saw 
that  he  was  suffering  deeply. 

283 


284  THE   MUTINEER 

"  You  shouldn't  overtax  yourself  like  this,  Mr. 
Young,"  he  said.    "  Where  are  you  going  ?  " 

A  deep  flush  dyed  Young's  sallow  face.  "  I  am 
going  to  Christian.     Do  you  think  he  will  see  me  ?  " 

Smith  looked  at  him  curiously  for  a  moment,  then 
held  out  his  hand,  "  I  am  sure  he  will,  sir.  God 
knows  you  have  done  him  bitter  wrong,  but  he  said 
to  me  only  the  other  day,  when  he  was  speaking  of 
his  wife,  that  he  had  too  many  sins  upon  his  own  head 
to  judge  either  you  or  her." 

Edward  Young's  hand  trembled  a  little  as  he  leaned 
upon  his  stick  ;  and  without  another  word  he  turned 
and  went  towards  Christian's  cave. 

The  dead  silence  of  the  place  oppressed  him,  and 
the  sight  of  Christian's  figure,  as  he  satjwith  his  hands 
to  his  face  at  the  entrance  to  the  cave,  made  him 
hesitate  and  shook  his  resolution,  but  only  for  a 
moment.  He  took  a  few  quick  steps  and  touched 
the  man  who  had  once  been  his  friend  on  the 
shoulder.    Christian  raised  his  head  and  looked  at  him. 

"  I  have  come  to  you,  Christian,  for  the  last  tim.e. 
I  am  not  a  sentimental  fool,  but  I  feel  that  if  you 
would  once  more  give  me  your  hand  and  think  of  me, 
not  as  the  cowardly  scoundrel  I  have  proved,  but  as 
your  old  and  trusted  messmate  of  days  gone  by,  I 
should  be  less  miserable.  I  feel  that  I  am  a  dying 
man — will  you  forgive  and  forget  ? " 

Only  the  sound  of  Young's  panting  breath  was 
heard  for  a  few  moments,  and  then  Fletcher  Christian 
stood  up  and  held  out  his  hand. 

"  I  forgive  you  freely,  Young.     Not  for  the  sake  or 


"TRY   TO    FORGET   THE   PAST"         285 

our  comradeship  in  crime,  but  in  the  knowledge  that 
I,  too,  need  forgiveness  in  the  sight  of  God  for  the 
bloody  deeds  that  my  mad  folly  and  hasty  temper  have 
brought  about.     There  is  my  hand." 

For  a  little  time  neither  of  them  spoke.  Young, 
looking  at  the  gaunt  figure  of  his  old  shipmate,  v/o.s 
filled  with  pity. 

His  memory  flew  back  to  the  days  at  Matavai 
when  the  young  officer  had  vanquished  in  friendly 
contest  the  picked  wrestlers  of  Tahiti,  and  Tina  and 
the  gentle  Aitia  had  praised  his  strength  and  courage. 
And  Christian,  as  he  listened  to  Young's  laboured 
breath  and  almost  whispered  tones,  knew  that  his 
time  was  not  far  off,  yet  that  for  them  both  there 
was  at  least  some  hope  of  a  brighter  future,  short  as  it 
might  be. 

Presently  Young,  with  his  hand  on  Christian's 
shoulder,   broke   the  silence. 

"  Let  us  try,  old  friend,  to  reconcile  ourselves  to  our 
lot.  I  have  not  long  to  live,  but  by  God's  help  will 
try  to  lead  a  better  life  than  I  have  done.  I  think  it 
is  Smith's  teaching.  .  .  .  And  so  I  want  you  to  come 
down  to  the  settlement  and  live  with  us  again.  .  .  , 
The  men  who  were  ever  a  disturbing  influence  here 
are  dead — one  by  my  hand.  .  .  .  You  alone  can 
inspire  all  that  are  left  of  us  with  hope  for  the  future. 
What  is  there  to  keep  you  from  us  now  ?  " 

"  Remorse,  Young — the  misery  of  my  thoughts — 
the  constant  dread — but  there,  my  dear  fellow,  leave 
me  to  myself.  You  and  Smith  alone,  of  all  the  fated 
wretches  who  participated  in  my  villainy,  have  striven 


286  THE    MUTINEER 

to  lead  decent  lives.  If  the  others  had  been  like  you, 
our  life  here  would  have  been  different.  It  is  too  late 
novv^ ;  I  cannot  bear  to  think  of  it.  My  crime  was 
bad  enough  when  I  saw  it  in  all  its  hideousness  five 
minutes  after  that  morning  off  Tofoa,  but  now " 

"Christian,"  and  Young's  voice  took  a  deep  earnest- 
ness, "  you  suffered  under  Bligh  as  none  of  us  sufiFered. 
I,  aye,  and  Smith  too,  were  equally  guilty  with  you 
and  the  mutiny  was  no  crime." 

"No  crime  !  Is  it  no  crime  to  have  been  the 
murderer  of  nineteen  persons  ? — nineteen  of  my  fellow- 
countrymen  turned  adrift  to  die  of  the  horrors  of 
hunger  and  thirst  in  an  open   boat ! " 

"They  may  have  reached  land." 

A  faint  light  came  into  Christian's  eyes — 
"  Young,  if  I  could  but  dare  to  hope  it  !  God  knows 
I  would  give  my  life  twenty  times  over  to  know  it. 
But,  even  if  they  did,  all  England  knows  the  infamy 
of  Fletcher  Christian,  the  disgraced  mutineer.  .  .  . 
But  what  difference  does  it  make  ?  Have  I  not  the 
blood  of  those  who  landed  here  with  me  upon  my  soul  ?" 

He  rose  from  his  seat  and  paced  to  and  fro  in  the 
gathering  dusk,  and  Young  could  see  that  his  emotion 
had  for  the  time  mastered  him. 

"  Come,"  he  said  at  last,  "  try  to  forget  the  past. 
Once  more  I  implore  you,  Christian,  to  return  to  the 
settlement.  Your  wife" — and  he  turned  his  face 
away  as  he  spoke  as  if  fearful  that  even  darkness 
could  not  hide  the  burning  flush  of  shame  upon  his 
cheeks — "  your  wife  is  in  no  fit  state  to  live  here. 
The  dreadful  loneliness  of  it  is  killing  her." 


"TRY   TO   FORGET   THE   PAST"         287 

A  step  sounded  near,  and  the  next  moment  Smith 
joined  them. 

"  Aye,  indeed,  Mr.  Christian.  She  was  never  a 
strong  woman,  and  her  time  is  near.  Surely  you  will 
let  her  come  and  be  tended  by  our  women  ? " 

The  sincerity  of  the  appeals  touched  him  at  last. 
"  You  are  right,  Smith,  God  bless  you,  old  friends 
both,  for  making  me  think  of  her  a  little.  Yes,  we 
will  come  and  dwell  in  the  settlement  till  the  child 
is  born." 

The  next  day  Mahina  came  down  from  the  cavern 
with  a  great  joy  in  her  heart ;  for  the  loneliness  of 
her  life,  even  with  her  husband  to  watch  over  her, 
robbed  her  of  both  health  and  strength,  and  she  loved 
to  hear  the  sound  of  her  countrywomen's  voices. 

A  few  weeks  afterwards  her  third  child  was  born  ; 
and  while  the  other  two  played  with  the  children  of 
McCoy,  Quintal,  and  Young,  Mahina  was  tenderly 
nursed  and  cared  for  by  the  Tahitians  till  she  grew 
strong  again. 

But  soon,  unable  to  conquer  his  aversion  to  the 
society  of  his  fellow-men,  Christain  again  left  her  to 
return  to  his  cave,  bidding  her  to  follow  him  when 
she  was  well  enough. 


The  first  day  of  the  nineteenth  century  came  in  as 
did  most  days  at  Pitcairn — a  flush  of  sunlight  melt- 
ing the  mists  of  the  mountain  tops,  piercing  the  dark 
shades  of  the  wooded  valleys  with  broad  blades  of 
golden  light,  and  rousing  the   sleeping  rookeries   of 


288  THE    MUTINEER 

sea-birds  into  clamorous  life.  Long  ere  the  glittering 
dews  of  the  night  that  hung  in  beady  drops  from  every 
leaf  and  blade  of  grass  had  quivered  and  fallen  to  the 
first  breaths  of  the  trade-wind,  Christian  awoke  from 
his  broken  slumbers,  and  was  moodily  taking  his 
accustomed   walk  along  the  eastern  cliffs. 

What  had  happened  in  the  world  he  had  left 
behind  ?  he  thouo-ht.  Was  he  accounted  as  long  since 
dead  ?  Was  there  one  living  soul  in  all  England 
whose  thoughts  went  out  to  him  sometimes  ?  Slowly 
he  paced  along  buried  in  thought.  When  he  reached 
the  end  of  his  walk  he  sat  on  a  jutting  ledge  of  rock 
overhanging  the  boiling  surf  three  hundred  feet  below, 
where  his  eye  ranged  over  the  wide  expanse  of  spark- 
ling ocean.  Day  after  day,  for  years  he  had  looked 
out  thus  upon  the  bosom  of  the  sailless  sea,  and  had 
seen  nothing  but  the  swift  flight  of  the  blue-billed 
kanapu  and  fierce-eyed  frigate  birds  as  they  sailed  to 
and  fro  or  plunged  from  aerial  heights  into  the  deep  ; 
or  far  above,  the  snow-white  tropic  birds,  floating  with 
motionless  wing  and  gazing  down  at  the  human  figure 
below.  Was  it  likely,  he  thought,  that  his  refuge 
would  ever  be  discovered  ?     Would 

He  started  to  his  feet  and  w^ith  dilated  eyes  looked 
at  the  horizon.  There,  clearly  within  view,  were  the 
topgallant  sails  of  a  ship  ! 

Crouching — he  knew  not  why — upon  his  knees,  he 
clutched  the  ledge  of  rock  with  shaking  hands  and 
watched  for  nearly  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  The  trade- 
wind  was  fast  bringing  the  ship  nearer,  and  before 
long  her  courses  rose  to  view.     A  few  minutes  more 


"TRY    TO    FORGET    THE    PAST"         289 

he  gazed,  then,  struck  by  a  sudden  impubc,  he  ran 
along  the  ledge  till  he  reached  the  pathway  to  Bounty 
Bay.  He  bounded  down  the  steep  and  fearful  descent 
to  where  the  Bounty  s  boat  was  hauled  up  upon  rough 
skids  laid  down  by  Young  and  Smith  many  months 
before.  Old  as  she  was,  the  boat  was  not  now  un- 
seaworthy,  as  she  had  been  when  Nahi  and  the  other 
Tahitian  women  attempted  to  escape  in  her  ;  for 
Smith  had  put  her  in  a  fair  state  of  repair,  so  that  she 
might  be  used  for  fishing  when  the  surf  did  not 
break  too  heavily  upon  the  shores  of  the  little 
bay. 

Christian  tugged  vainly  at  the  boat  and  rocked  her 
from  side  to  side  in  an  endeavour  to  start  her  down 
the  skids  ;  but  his  strength  was  not  equal  to  the 
task. 

He  ceased  his  efforts,  and  then  looked  seaward, 
but  the  ship  was  not  visible  from  where  he 
stood. 

"  Oh  !  for  some  help,"  he  muttered,"  "  but  that  I 
cannot,  dare  not  seek  ;  neither  Young  nor  Smith 
must  see  me."  He  thought  for  a  moment,  then  with 
excitement,  began  again  to  ascend  the  path  to  his 
cave.  Panting  with  his  exertions  he  soon  gained  the 
top  of  the  cliff's,  and  ran  along  the  dangerous  path  till 
he  reached  the  cavern.  He  darted  inside  and  quickly 
reappeared  with  his  musket  and  a  block  and  tackle, 
which  he  had  often  used  to  drag  weights  to  his  retreat. 
With  this  he  hoped  to  launch  the  boat  by  making  one 
end  or  the  tackle  fast  to  a  point  of  rock  just  at  tjie 
water's  edge,  and    the  other    to    her    stern   ringbolt. 

20 


290  THE    MUTINEER 

The  musket  he  intended  to  fire  to  attract  notice  from 
the  ship  should  other  means  fail. 

Returning  to  the  beach  he  was  soon  exerting  all 
his  strength  to  start  the  heavy  little  boat  down  to 
the  water. 


CHAPTER  XXXV 


THE    LAST    SHOT    ON    AFITA. 


BY  this  time  the  ship  was  within  three  or  four 
miles  of  the  island,  and  had  been  seen  by  one  of 
the  Tahitian  women.  She  ran  back  to  the  settlement, 
and  roused  the  little  community  to  a  state  of  wild 
excitement  by  her  loud  cries  of  "A  ship  !  a  ship  ! 
A  ship  is  coming." 

Soon  Young  and  Smith  reached  the  clifFs,  and  one 
glance  at  the  ocean  showed  them  the  vessel — a  ship  of 
war,  they  were  quick  to  perceive,  by  the  cut  of  her 
canvas  and  her  lofty  spars. 

Young  was  scarcely  able  to  walk,  and  his  excitement 
at  first  prevented  him  from  speaking,  but  when  he 
could  control  himself  he  held  a  hurried  consultation 
with  Smith,  who  then  set  off  for  Christian's  cave  to 
inform  him  of  the  ship's  approach,  while  Young 
returned  to  the  settlement  and  told  Mahina  to  prepare 
to  leave  the  house  and,  with  the  other  women,  be 
ready  to  hide  herself  if  necessary. 

They  had  resolved,  as  a  first  step   towards  safety, 

that  every  person  on  the  island  should  assemble  near  the 

291 


292  THE   MUTINEER 

cavern.  The  difficulty  of  access  and  the  remoteness  of 
its  situation,  they  thought,  would  afford  them  all  a  safe 
retreat  from  such  people  as  might  land.  It  was  hoped 
by  Young  and  Smith  that,  unless  the  vessel  was  a 
King's  ship  specially  sent  to  search  for  the  missing 
mutineers,  those  who  placed  foot  on  shore  would  not 
easily  discover  that  the  island  was  inhabited.  As  a  first 
precaution,  however,  some  of  the  women  were  sent  to 
remove  all  traces  of  human  occupancy  from  the  two 
little  beaches,  and  to  cover  up  the  bounty  $  boat  with 
dead  coconut  branches  and  bushes. 

Four  of  them  departed  to  do  this,  while  Mahina  and 
her  children,  with  the  remaining  women,  set  out  for 
Christian's  cave. 

But  when  they  reached  the  cavern  they  found  it 
deserted  by  both  Christian  and  Smith,  and  saw  that  no 
preparations  had  been  made  to  defend  the  narrow  path 
leading  to  the  stronghold. 

Frightened  at  the  absence  of  the  two  men,  the  terri- 
fied women  ran  hither  and  thither,  calling  loudly,  and 
seeking  for  traces  of  them ;  till  presently  Mahina, 
wildly  excited,  sped  down  the  path  and  looked  over 
the  edge  of  the  cliffs  to  the  beach  below.  Then  a  cry 
of  alarm  broke  from  her. 

Beckoning  to  the  others,  she  flew  down  the  perilous 
path  to  the  shore.  Half-way  she  stumbled  and,  but 
for  a  projecting  pinnacle  of  rock,  would  have  pitched 
headlong  to  the  beach.  Before  she  recovered  herself 
the  other  women  overtook  her,  and  were  peering  down 
to  discover  what  it  was  that  had  so  agitated  her.  But 
from  where  they  clustered  together  they  could  see  only 


THE   LAST   SHOT   ON   AFITA  293 

the  billows  bursting  in  foam  upon  the  black  rocks 
below  ;  and  while  they  waited  for  Mahina  to  explain 
there  came  the  report  of  a  musket  from  beneath. 

Too  far  down  on  their  way  to  turn  back,  as  their 
rears  dictated,  Mahina's  companions  stood  trembling 
and  hesitating,  their  hearts  filled  with  an  undefined 
apprehension  that  some  fresh  tragedy  had  occurred. 


Smith,  filled  with  anxiety  for  his  leader,  had  hurried 
along  the  rocky  track  to  Christian's  cave.  The  dreaded 
hour  had  arrived  at  last — the  hour  that  he  and  the 
other  mutineers  had  so  often  feared.  A  King's  ship  ! 
Yes,  she  could  be  no  other  !  His  seaman's  eye  told 
him  she  was  a  ship  of  war.  Perhaps  she  was  a  French- 
man ?  That  was  not  likely.  She  was  English — sent 
to  search  for  them ;  and  even  if  she  were  not,  she 
evidently  intended  to  send  a  boat  ashore.  Once  a 
landing  party  from  the  ship  ascended  the  cliflFs  they 
could  not  fail  to  see  the  houses,  and  would  not  take 
long  to  find  those  who  lived  in  them.  Then  would 
come  discovery  and  a  disgraceful  death. 

But,  thought  he,  Christian  will  never  be  taken  alive  ; 
and  even  if  the  presence  of  white  men  upon  the  island 
should  be  discovered,  the  cave  was  hard  to  find.  And 
still,  even  if  the  ship  were  in  search  of  Christian  and 
his  companions,  the  identity  of  the  inhabitants  might 
not  perhaps  be  suspected.  If  the  worst  came  to  the 
worst,  they  could  make  a  fight  of  it  to  the  death  in 
such  a  place  as  Christian's  stronghold. 

So    ran    the   quick   current   of   his   thoughts  as   he 


294  THE    MUTINEER 

panted  up  the  ridge  to  the  cave — then,  with  an  ex- 
clamation of  dismay,  he  saw  that  it  was  untenanted. 

As  loudly  as  possible  he  called  Christian's  name,  but 
only  the  countless  reverberation  of  his  cries  answered 
him  from  the  desolate  solitude.  A  hurried  glance 
down  the  path  which  he  had  just  ascended  showed  no 
human  being  in  sight.  Surely  Christian  could  not  be 
far  off?  He  must  either  be  coming  along  the  ridge 
and  hidden  from  view,  or  lying  asleep  somewhere 
along  the  edge  of  the  cliffs.  Perhaps  he  had  gone  to 
the  beach  ? 

Hastily  descending  again,  Smith  struck  across  to  the 
eastern  side  of  the  island,  till  he  came  to  a  spot  which 
overlooked  Bounty  Bay.  He  knew  that  Christian,  in 
his  lonely  wanderings,  sometimes  visited  the  place,  and 
sat  for  hours  upon  the  wreckage  of  the  Bounty  $  spars. 
A  thick,  stunted  growth  of  matted  scrub  and  vines 
grew  to  the  very  edge  of  the  cliffs,  but  hastily  pushing 
through  it,  the  seaman  looked  down.  There,  far  below, 
he  saw  the  man  he  sought,  bending  his  tackle  to  launch 
the  bounty's  boat ! 

The  next  moment,  too  anxious  even  to  lose  time 
by  descending  the  regular  path  Smith,  at  the  hazard  of 
his  life,  began  to  scramble  down  the  almost  precipitous 
face  of  the  cliff.  At  last,  with  bleeding  feet  and  hands, 
he  reached  the  shore. 

"In  God's  name,  Mr.  Christian,  what  are  you 
trying  to  do  ?  "  he  demanded,  breathlessly. 

"What  am  I  trying  to  do?"  repeated  Christian 
fiercely — "  I  am  about  to  end  it  all.  That  is  a  King's 
ship,  and  I  am  going  to  give  myself  up." 


THE    LAST    SHOT    ON   AFITA  295 

"You  must  be  mad  to  talk  like  this.  Come  away 
at  once  and  let  us  get  back  to  the  cave,  or  we  shall  all 
be  discovered." 

"  It  will  be  your  own  fault  ifyou  are  ;  you  and  those 
with  you  may  do  as  you  please,  but  I  will  board  that 
ship,"  answered  Christian  wildly,  and  Smith  saw  that 
he  was  nearly  mad  with  excitement.  As  he  spoke  he 
still  strained  with  all  his  might  on  the  tackle,  and  the 
boat,  once  started,  slid  down  the  skids  till  her  stern 
touched  the  pebbly  beach. 

"  By  God,  you  shan't  do  this  !  Our  lives  as  well  as 
yours  depend  upon  your  hiding  with  us  "  ;  and  Smith 
laid  his  hand  on  the  fall  of  the  tackle  so  as  to  prevent 
Christian  from  unshipping  the  hook. 

"  Stand  back,  Smith  !  Stand  back,  I  say.  I  swear 
that  no  longer  shall  justice  go  unsatisfied.  I  will  go  ! " 
As  a  wave  dashed  up,  the  boat  lifted  and  floated  ;  he 
sprang  past  Smith,  jumped  in  and  cast  off  the  tackle. 

Seizing  hold  of  the  gunwale.  Smith  exerted  all  his 
strength  and  drew  the  boat  broadside  on  to  the  beach. 

"  Beware,  man,  beware  ! "  and  Christian's  eyes 
blazed  with  sudden  fury — "  let  go  your  hold,  I  say. 
I  am  dangerous  !  "  Smith  recognised  it  was  no  time 
for  words  ;  he  released  his  hold,  jumped  into  the  boat, 
and  threw  himself  upon  the  desperate  man.  They 
went  down  together,  and  the  boat  rocked  from  side 
to  side  with  the  violence  of  their  struggle.  No 
word  was  spoken,  but  there  was  in  Christian's  face 
such  a  look  of  savage  determination  to  overcome  his 
friend,  that  Smith  at  last  aimed  a  blow  at  his  head, 
thinking  to  stun  him  for  a  time. 


296  THE    MUTINEER 

Nerved  with  a  madman's  strength,  the  blow  only 
seemed  to  rouse  him  to  greater  fury  ;  with  a  mighty 
effort  he  freed  himself  from  Smith's  left  arm,  which 
was  wound  about  his  waist,  and  in  another  moment  his 
hand  grasped  the  barrel  of  the  loaded  musket,  which  he 
drew  towards  him  by  the  muzzle. 

Then  Smith  again  threw  himself  upon  him.  There 
was  a  short,  fierce  struggle,  a  report,  and  Fletcher 
Christian  sank  back  with  a  groan — the  ball  had  passed 
through  his  chest. 

Sick  with  horror.  Smith  staggered  to  his  feet  and 
raised  the  dying  man  in  his  arms.  He  lifted  him  out 
of  the  boat  and  carried  him  to  the  beach,  where  he 
placed  him  in  a  sitting  posture ;  then  tearing  off 
his  shirt  he  sought  to  stanch  the  fearful  rush  of 
blood. 

"  My  God,  sir  !  my  God,  sir !  you  don't  think  'twas 
my  doing  ?  "  he  asked  in  anguished  tones. 

"  No,  no,  my  good  fellow,"  gasped  Christian,  "  you 
are  not  to  blame.  My  foot  must  have  touched  the 
trigger.  ...  I  was  mad." 

Smith  knelt  beside  him,  overcome  with  grief  and 
blinded  by  tears.  He  took  his  leader's  hand  in  his  and 
tried  to  speak,  but  one  look  at  the  gaping  wound  told 
him  that  the  end  was  near. 

And  then  there  echoed  from  the  cliffs  a  cry  of  heart- 
broken agony.  Mahina,  springing  from  rock  to  rock, 
had  reached  the  overhanging  ledge  under  which  her 
husband  lay,  and,  looking  down,  saw  him. 

Leaping  to  the  ground,  she  turned  upon  Smith. 
"  Thou  murderer  ;  thou  hast  slain  him  !  "  she  cried. 


THE    LAST    SHOT    ON   AFITA  297 

and  pushing  him  away,  threw  herself  upon  her  knees 
beside  her  husband. 

"  Nay,  nay,  Mahina,"  he  said  ;  "  not  so.  My  foot 
struck  the  gun.  .  .  .  He  hath  ever  been  my  friend. 
.  .  .  Listen  to  me  ...  for  in  a  little  time  I  die." 

Slowly  and  gaspingly  the  words  came,  and  Mahina, 
with  a  sob  of  misery,  saw  the  grey  shadows  of  death 
dimming  the  eyes  of  him  she  loved  so  well. 

"  He  shall  not  die  ;  he  shall  not  die  ! "  she  cried 
wildly  to  Smith  and  Young,  who  had  now  joined  them, 
and  was  overcome  at  the  scene  before  him.  "  Save 
him,  save  him,  lest  ye  both  die  accursed  !  "  then  burst 
into  anguished  weeping,  as  she  bent  her  face  upon  her 
husband's  knees. 

"  Is  that  you.  Young  ?  "  asked  Christian  faintly — 
"  my  time  is  nearly  run,  old  friend,"  and  he  put  out 
his  brown,  sun-tanned  hand.  "  But,  quick  ;  listen  to 
me.  .  .  .  Save  yourselves  while  there  is  yet  time. 
.  .  .  The  ship  must  be  near  now." 

"  No,"  said  Young,  pressing  his  hand,  "  she  kept  oft 
quite  suddenly  when  within  a  mile  of  the  land.  I  saw 
her  stand  away  again  to  the  westward.  In  another 
hour  she'll  be  hull  down." 

"Thank  God!"  he  murmured.  "Mahina  . 
wife  .  .  .  come  closer  to  me,  .  .  .  and  you.  Young 
and  Smith,  give  me  your  hands.  Promise  me  that  no 
one  but  yourselves  shall  ever  know  where  I  lie.  Let 
no  other  white  man  point  to  my  grave  and  say, 
'  Fletcher  Christian  .  .  .  mutineer.'  " 

He  ceased,  then  by  a  dying  effort,  opened  his  arms 
wide. 


298  THE    MUTINEER 

"  Mahina  !  My  wife  !  Mother  of  my  children  ! 
•  •  •  it  is  all  over  now,"  he  sighed  with  his  last  breath, 
as  his  arms  closed  gently  round  her  neck. 

She  pressed  her  cheek  to  his  ;  his  head  sank  upon 
her  shoulder,  and  then  lay  there  in  the  quietness  of 
death. 

*  *  *  *  * 

Years  later,  when  Pitcairn  was  "  discovered,"  the 
venerable  man,  loved  and  revered  by  the  children  of 
the  mutineers  under  the  name  of  John  Adams,  revealed 
his  identity  with  Alexander  Smith,  and  tremblingly 
waited  to  hear  his  fate  from  the  lips  of  the  naval 
officers  who  had  landed  on  the  island.  The  story  of 
the  death  of  Young  from  consumption  soon  after  that 
of  Christian,  as  well  as  the  deaths  of  the  others  of  the 
ill-starred  company,  was  told  by  him  ;  though,  faithful 
to  his  promise,  he  refused  to  show  his  leader's  last 
resting-place  ;  and  the  listeners  heard  for  the  first  time 
the  fate  of  the  Bounty  mutineers. 


THE    END. 


UNWIN  BROTHERS,  PRINTERS,  WOKIXG  A.\D  LOXDOX. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


^^^^l-'S^Ql^ 


^c:C'D  Lit) 


007  3  0  1991 


AIIIflDISCJANll'91 


OEC    2l9ftJ 


220ct^^^ 


f^EC'D  LD 


OCT  20 '65 -8  am 


jm  B 


lEC.  CIH.    Mv 


LD  21A-50to-3,'62 
(C7097sl0)476B 


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